


And One More For The Road

by zeroisapi



Series: Boone and Jolene [1]
Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout: New Vegas
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/M, Mild Language, Not Beta Read, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2019-04-16
Packaged: 2019-09-26 19:16:25
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 29
Words: 29,277
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17147552
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zeroisapi/pseuds/zeroisapi
Summary: Boone thinks nothing good can come his way, he doesn't deserve happiness, and his death will come soon. He doesn't deserve to be traveling with Six and he knows it, he's lucky that she even puts up with him.She teaches him otherwise.(I posted this a few months ago under the username 101-scribbles, but I deleted that account and am now reposting it because I miss working on it... and edited it a bunch)





	1. Chapter 1

The cool wind of the Mojave night blew through the Novac sniper nest while Craig Boone kept watch over his stretch of 95. There usually weren’t any travelers throughout the night, very rarely did he ever see any red. Occasionally, a stray gecko or ghoul would wander too close. But that was just occasionally. He didn’t see her enter Novac, so she must have come during Manny’s shift. He wasn’t expecting her to arrive in the nest during his shift, though. He didn’t even know how she managed to get in without the old door squeaking like hell. He jumped a little when she cleared her throat.

“Dammit,” he cursed, “Don’t sneak up on me like that. What do you want?”

“I heard there was a sniper nest up here,” she said, “Wanted to check it out.”

If she was trying to be funny she wasn’t doing a good job. He glared at her.

“You shouldn’t be up here, I think you better leave.”

The girl’s small smile fell, “Are you this mean to everyone?”

Boone hesitated and scanned her face. From the moonlight, he could make out scratches across her face. They looked fresh.

“Looks like a Ghoul got to you,” he said.

“I was passin’ through a few days ago, I ran into Manny,” she said, “We made ‘n exchange. I cleared out the RepConn launch site and he told me some information I needed.

“Passing through? You aren’t from here, are you?”

“No,” she shook her head.

“Maybe you shouldn’t go,” he said, “Not just yet.”

“Now you want something from me?”

The girl crossed her arms and shifted back.

“I need someone I can trust,” he countered, “You’re a stranger. That’s a start.”

The girl thought for a moment and nodded, “Okay. What’s the job?”

“I need you to find something out for me,” Boone said, “My wife was taken from our home by Legion slavers one night while I was on watch. They knew when to come and what route to take. They only took Carla. Someone set it up. I don’t know who.”

“You want me to find Carla?” she asked.

“She’s dead,” Boone said roughly, “I want the son of a bitch who sold her.”

“And when I find this person?”

“Bring him in front of the nest while I’m on duty,” he said, “I work nights. I’ll give you my NCR beret to put on. It’ll be our signal, so I know you’re standing with him. I’ll take care of the rest. I need to do this myself.”

He handed her the beret.

“I’ll see what I can do,” she nodded.

“Good,” he said, “I’ll make it worth your while. And one more thing. We shouldn’t take until this whole thing is over.”

“Got it,” the girl said.

She turned and left.

Boone didn’t see her again for three nights. For three nights he stood waiting for her to show with his legion-loving, cock-sucking, wife-selling, poor excuse of a neighbor. On the third night after their agreement, the girl walked out in front of the nest with Boone’s beret in hand.

A woman walked alongside the girl.

They stopped on the rocks by the bridge leading into town and talked for a moment. He tracked their movement with the scope, training his sight between them. The girl put Boone’s beret on and took a step back from the woman. Boone took no time to shoot and kill the woman.

Jeannie May Crawford. He should have known. She never gave them the same hospitality the rest of the town got. It always seemed forced, never genuine. At the time, Boone didn’t care because he was with Carla. Anyone could say anything to him while he was around her, he wouldn’t care (or even realize) what was said. But really it made all the difference. He should have noticed, he should have known.

The girl wiped the spray of blood from her face as she walked back into town. Boone kept his eyes on the road, but kept in mind she’d pop up behind him any moment now.

“Here’s your hat back,” she said when she walked in.

“So that’s it, how did you know it was her?” he asked while putting his beret b=

“I did some diggin’, I ain’t proud of it but it got the job done,” the girl said. She handed him a slip of paper.

Boone scanned over the bill of sale. Noting a few phrases.  _ Carla Boone. Unborn child. Jeannie May Crawford.  _ It was all there in his hand. He had the answer but he still didn’t feel any satisfaction from knowing Jeannie was responsible for Caral’s kidnapping nor did he feel satisfied with the death of Jeannie. Not to say he wasn’t happy the bitch had her head blown off.

“It’s like them to keep paperwork,” was all Boone could say.

The girl must not have been satisfied with the outcome either because she kept talking.

“What are you going to do now?”

“I don’t know,” Boone said, “I probably won’t stay here.”

“Come with me,” the girl offered, “We can go after the Legion together.”

With some slight pestering, Boone agreed and left with the girl.

She called herself ‘Jolene’.


	2. Chapter 2

Jolene trudged slowly across the desert. She stopped often to drink or look around. Boone wasn’t sure if it was because she saw something in the distance or not. Most times there was nothing to worry about. She fiddled with her gun, looking at it like a girl who had only recently come into owning one. Aimed like it too. Boone thought her lucky to have him watching her back. If not for her way with words, she would have no chance against the ruthless Mojave. She’s handy with a knife, though. He’s seen her crack a Radscorpion’s shell open before in just a few seconds. She knew where the weak spot was and how to remove large chunks at a time. Boone stepped back while she pulled the good meat out and put it away. She stood back up and wiped the blood off of her hands.

The same day, he learned she was a fine cook and could set up a campfire. Jolene knelt down and worked on lighting the fire while Boone took watch. She had chosen an isolated spot. Nothing was around that could hurt them. Still, Boone didn’t let his guard down as he looked across the nearby desert. The sunset behind Boone. Jolene must’ve gotten the fire going, he could hear crackling behind him. She hummed while she cooked, Boone made out the tune as a song that had played on the radio earlier.

She came and sat near Boone.

“Want some?” she asked. She held out the grilled meat.

Boone took his share and ate while Jolene continued to talk.   
“My mama never taught me to cook,” she said, “Didn’t teach me nothing but how to walk and talk. Learned how to cook when I left an’ had to eat. Wanted food like how she made it, took some time but I nearly got it. Beats bein’ homesick.”

Boone nodded along and took another bite of his steak. It had a spicy kick to it and was better than NCR rations, he could actually chew through the steak.

“My daddy, he taught me my life skills,” she continued, “Taught me how important my words were, how to talk my way outta tough situations. That was after he tried teachin’ me to shoot. Taught me to help out others, ‘cause you never know when you’ll need the good karma to come back for you. Taught me more than Mama did. Used to get me to sweet caravan traders for lower prices. I still remember the first thing I talked into gettin’ a discount for. Cute little teddy bear. Carried that thing with me everywhere. Left it behind with my parents when I up and left.”

“Why’d you leave?” Boone asked.

“Money,” she sighed, “Daddy got a bum leg and had to quit the courier business. Mama didn’t want me to be working in a clinic with her ‘cause I talk too much. So I took Daddy’s place as a Courier. Been doin’ it for like, three years or so. Got this big job couple weeks back, was plannin’ on takin’ the wages back home after I finished the job.”

“And? What happened?”

“This guy, Benny, and some Great Khans kidnapped me,” she huffed, “Tried to talk my way out like my daddy taught me. Robbed me of all my money and my delivery. Shot me twice, then buried me alive.”

“Jesus,” was all Boone could say.

“Get this,” she turned to Boone, “A cowboy robot digs me up and I’m still kickin’. Barely though. I was in this coma for like a week, all the while a doctor’s takin’ the bullets outta my brain.”

Boone hadn’t noticed the two entry points on her forehead before. One at her hairline, the other at her temple. The ordeal must’ve happened not too long before she met Boone. Her forehead was still bruised and scabbing over. He wondered if she talked so slow because of it. She talked slower than most people did, not too slow that she sounded dumb, slow enough to give her a charm that was just the cherry on top of her silver words. She had been talking for a while, not that Boone minded. He knew that she was the type of girl that needed someone to talk to about things, she must not have had anyone recently to listen to her.

“Anyway, I’m going to go get some rest,” she said, “Wake me up in about four hours and we’ll switch.”

She got up and went inside. Boone repositioned himself to get a better view of his surroundings. The moon was already high above. Nothing to do but watch and think. During the night there was only one incident where Boone had to defend their camp. He had shot a pair of Legionnaires that had strayed too close for comfort. It was a good night.

Jolene came out when the sun rose. She took a few steps and kicked the dirt next to Boone.

You didn’t wake me up,” she said.

“I didn’t get tired.”

She sighed, “Let’s get going, big plans today.”

Boone got up and followed Jolene to her next destination.


	3. Chapter 3

Jolene bounced around the different NCR camps set up south of New Vegas. She didn’t seem too concerned with the looming revenge she talked about every night. Every chance she got, she spoke about how she wanted to rip Benny apart, see his suit stained red. She changed the way she wanted to kill him every time she brought him up. Once she said she would tie him up, shoot him, and bury him in a shallow grave just as he did to her. Another time she said she’d gouge his eyes out with a rusty spoon and let him die blind of an infection in the middle of the desert. And most recently that she’d strangle him with her own bare hands. Boone didn’t spoil her fun, only egging her on.

In the two weeks of knowing Jolene, Boone helped her get HELIOS One up and running properly, save NCR troops taken as hostages in a mine, and most recently track down missing supply-runners for Camp Forlorn Hope. And there was much to do at Forlorn Hope.

Jolene had already treated a few men for Doctor Richards and recovered the lost supplies for Quartermaster Mayes. Now she was investigating missing medical supplies. She had gone around and asked some of the men if they knew anything. It took her just two hours to figure out Private Stone had hooked himself on Hydra and was stealing Richard’s supply to fuel his addiction, then another quarter hour to convince him to turn himself in.

“You ready to go?” Boone asked when he was sure they had exhausted all the dirty work this camp needed finished.

She shook her head, “One thing I still wanna do before we leave.”

Boone followed Jolene to the barracks. Her whole demeanor changed when they walked in. She swayed her hips as she walked and stood up a little straighter.  _ Oh _ . Boone stopped as she walked up to Private Sexton. He got up from his chair and tried to hide the small smile on his face. It was no secret this boy had a crush on her. Jolene was young and pretty, a real sight for the boys stationed out here. Her good looks were as talked about in the NCR just as her good deeds.

“Hey James,” she said, “Anything new?”

“I had a new idea to boost morale,” he said, he rubbed his arm and kept his eyes on her, “I wanted a second opinion.”

“What is it?”

“A competition,” James explained, “Cut off the ear of a Legion soldier when you defeat them and bring them back to me. Whoever collects to most Legion ears gets a small prize. Get it, Legion ears… legionnaires?”

Jolene giggled and put her hand on his arm, “That’s the funniest thing I’ve ever heard.”

James scratched the back of his neck, “You think? I’ve been waiting to tell you that.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah, wanted to hear your laugh,” he said, “See you smile.”

“Wasn’t too hard for you, huh?” Jolene said, “They choose the right guy to be Morale Officer.”

“You sure know how to make a guy feel great.”

“Between you ‘n’ me, baby,” she dropped to a low whisper, “I can make you feel like the luckiest guy alive. Dig?”

“I dig,” he laughed, “Let’s go somewhere a little more private, huh? I know just the place.”

“I like that,” she said.

Boone stayed in the barracks for a few minutes before taking a walk. He and Carla had met at their age and used to run off like Private Sexton and Jolene had just done. The third night he had known Carla, they slipped from the casino away from her friends and made their way to her hotel room. It was the first of many nights they spent in that hotel room before his leave ended and he went on another tour.

Boone wasn’t sure how long they would be gone but didn’t want to hang around the guys’ beds for too long. He lapped the camp once, twice, fifteen times before Jolene showed back up. A large hickey reaching out from below the neck of her large jacket.

Private Sexton came walking by just a minute later, his head held high and a grin plastered across his face.

“Okay, I done everything I wanted here,” Jolene said with a small laugh, “Let’s go.”

Boone followed Jolene out of Camp Forlorn Hope, twenty paces back.


	4. Chapter 4

“To hell with that,” Boone spat as they entered Nelson after receiving orders to mercy kill some hostages, “We’re getting those guys out of there.”

Jolene turned back with a quick nod, “Stick close.”

The pair crouch and snuck into the Legion camp.

Jolene picked up her pace and jumped on a legionnaire, lodging her knife in his neck. He thrashed and grabbed for his machete. She kept her arms wrapped around him and kicked his machete out of his hand. He pulled her off of him and flipped her over. She yanked him down and rolled over on top of him.

The commotion drew attention, a pair of legionnaires started running over. Boone shot them and didn’t even notice as Jolene took on her next victim. He had enthralled himself in seeing the bodies drop. It was for her, all for her. For all he cared, they were responsible, they were there that day. They kidnapped his wife. If he was any better at hand to hand, he’d be on top of them, bashing their heads in with the butt of his rifle.

When it was over, Jolene’s hands bloodstained, she had dirt and blood smeared over her face, and she was somehow still presentable. He put his gun on his back and walked towards the NCR troopers hung up on the crucifixes. He gave Jolene a leg up while she cut the ropes off of the men. Each thanked them before running to the NCR station up the road. When the last man was set free, Jolene sat on the edge of the platform and wiped the blood off of her hands and her knife.

“Mercy killing is a last resort,” Boone told her, “I’m glad you knew we had options.”

“Daddy said we don’t hurt our friends,” she muttered.

Boone nodded. She put her knife away and got up. They left and went to Novac for the night. As they neared the town, Jolene turned around to Boone.

“I’m a little low on caps,” she said, “Can I crash on your couch tonight?”

“That’s fine.”

“Thanks,” she smiled.

Boone’s room was just as he had left it. His bed was neatly made and his extra boots were by the door. He had left a can of pork and beans on the table. Jolene sat on his couch and put her weapons on the table. She unlaced her boots and set them to the side. Boone grabbed her a quilt from his footlocker. It was scratchy and made before the Great War, but it was warm. She pulled the quilt over her and fell fast asleep.

Boone tried to sleep as well. He was used to odds amounts of sleep, but it had been at least 70 hours since he had slept. He needed rest if he was going to make it to New Vegas.


	5. Chapter 5

Jolene woke up before Boone.  She had woken up after sunrise when the sun shone through the window and into her eyes. She had put her boots back on, folded up the quilt, and cleaned her pocket knife while waiting for Boone to wake up. She hadn’t gotten the chance to use it much since Boone started traveling with her. She barely had time to whip it out if someone got too close to her before they were dead in front of her.

When Boone got up, she was leaning back looking at the ceiling. He noticed the stained blade flipping between her fingers. He was impressed at how smoothly it passed around her fingers. He had known a guy during basic training that tried to teach himself tricks to pass the time. He ended up slicing his palm open and contracting some sort of disease that sent him home. Jolene should be careful if that blood wasn’t hers, never know what kind of crap people carry. He got out of bed and laced his boots up. He strapped his gun to his back, then put his glasses and beret on. He adjusted his shirt and got up.

The two left the town and headed north.

Jolene had tuned the radio on her Pip-Boy to the and hummed along to the songs. She walked faster than before. At the pace of a regular person. The morning was mostly uneventful. They stopped by Camp Forlorn Hope and dropped off the sack of Legion Ears they had collected.

Boone liked the competition, it was just another reason to kill the legionnaires.

At midday, Jolene decided it was time for lunch and sat at the side of the road. Boone leaned against a nearby rock while Jolene dug through her pack.

She turned to Boone, “Got any objections to eating Iguana?”

He shook his head.

“Okay, here,” she said, “Iguana bits.”

Boone ate his food while Jolene nibbled at hers.

“Tell me ‘bout yourself, Boone,” she said.

“If you want,” he sighed, “Not really my thing. What do you want to know?”

“What outfit did you serve in the military?” she asked.

“The First NCR Recon,” he said, “It’s a sniper battalion. Sees a lot of action. We were moved around a lot. I was stationed at Camp Golf for a while. Last I heard, they’re at Camp McCarran.”

“How did you join the First Recon?” she scooted a little closer to listen to Boone.

“They pick you out if you do well at the firing range,” he said, “Pays a little better, so I said yes.”

“Is the beret from them?” she asked.

Boone nodded, “Yeah. You can tell by the patch. Bear skull with crossed rifles behind it. Slogan underneath.”

“What’s the slogan?”

“The last thing you’ll never see,” he said, “Pretty accurate, so were we.”

Jolene smiled, mirroring Boone’s, “Sounds cool.”

By the evening they were in Boulder City. The sun was just beginning to set, the ruined buildings cast long shadows over the rubble. A little past the monument, an officer stopped them.

“We’ve got a situation with the Great Khans right now,” the soldier said putting his hand up, “I’ve got orders to lock down the ruins until it’s resolved.”

“The Great Khans?” Jolene asked, “What’s going on?”

“One of my patrols was on its way back from Novac when it came under fire from the Great Khans,” he explained, “They radioed for reinforcements but didn’t wait for us and chased the Khans into the ruins where they were caught in the crossfire. No deaths, but Private Ackerman and Private Gilbert are being held hostage.”

“I may be able to negotiate a deal with the Great Khans,” Jolene offered, “I have a way with words.”

“Normally, I’d turn you down since you’re a civilian,” he said, “but considering that the hostages are as good as dead when we attack… All right, I’m going to give you a chance to talk to the Great Khans. Their leader is a man named Jessup. If we hear shooting, we’ll be coming in, but it’ll probably be too late for you.”

“Don’t worry about me,” she said.

“Good luck,” the soldier nodded.

Boone followed Jolene into the deeper ruins of the city. She went to the furthest building and stopped before she went inside. She huffed, clenched her jaw, and turned to Boone.

“These people tried to kill me,” she said, her voice dropped to a whisper so the troops waiting nearby wouldn’t hear, “They kidnapped me.”

“I won’t let them do it again,” Boone promised. He took his gun off of his back and held it over his chest.

Jolene put a brave face on and walked in.

“What the hell?” a man swore, “You’re supposed to be dead!”

“Well, I’m not, and I believe you have something of mine,” she said. She crossed her arms and stared at Jessup.

“Yeah, about that,” he sighed.

“Where’s the Platinum Chip?” Jolene snapped. Her arms went down and her hand twitched at her side, itching for her knife.

“Don’t have it,” Jessup said, “Benny stole it, right before he stabbed us in the back. He’s probably back at the Tops by now, laughing at me.”

Jolene huffed, she nodded.

“Let’s talk about settling things between you and the NCR,” she said.

“What’s to negotiate? The NCR backs off,” he said, “we walk out of here, nobody gets hurt.”

“Free the hostages now and-” Jolene paused for a moment, “and I’ll have the NCR escort you out of their territory.”

The tension in the room grew as she and Jessup held the look. Jolene’s a confident “I know I’m in charge but I’m acting like you are” gaze, and Jessups intimidating glare. Boone made sure that the safety was off.

“I can’t believe I’m doing this,” Jessup shook his head, “but all right, the hostages can go. The NCR better keep their end of the deal, though. Here - a souvenir for you. It’s Benny’s lighter. Shove it up his ass when you catch up with him.”

“Trust me, I will,” Jolene said as she took the lighter.

The hostages were set free, they quickly made their way past the line of soldiers at the end of the ruined street. Jolene and Boone left the gang in the building. The Lieutenant stopped Jolene on their way up.

“I’m glad you were able to free my people,” he said, “But I got orders to take out the Great Khans.”

“The Great Khans let the hostages go in exchange for their own freedom,” Jolene said.

“My hands are tied,” he sighed, “I can’t go against orders, can I?”

“If you got any integrity, you’ll honor the deal you made to get your men out of there,” Jolene said.

“You’re right,” he nodded, “Great Khans are free to go.”

Jolene gave a decisive nod and left Boulder City.


	6. Chapter 6

Camp Golf was the destination of the day. Jolene and Boone came upon the previous resort early in the morning after waking up to a Legion ambush on their camp. If Jolene hadn’t locked the door and Boone didn’t keep his gun loaded, they wouldn’t be there. Jolene looked around the place before going into the tent closest to the Hotel. Inside she talked to the sergeant.

“Damn, look who it is,” he said when Jolene walk in.

Word had gotten around about all the help Jolene had offered to the southern camps. The NCR thought highly of her and couldn’t hide it. She was still not used to getting positive attention from strangers and beamed.

“Hey,” she greeted, “How’d you end up at Camp Golf?”

“Been here since the first push to Vegas,” Sergeant McCredie said, “Back then, this was the hotspot for conflicts with the Legion and the likes. These days, I spend my time trying to be a little discipline into the soldiers under my command. They’ve gotten soft with no action.”

“So what do you do now that the fighting’s died down?” Jolene cocked he head to the side.

“Mostly drill the troops,” McCredie said, “try to keep the discipline up and the combat readiness high. It’s not the easiest job in the world - soldiers without a mission get bored easily. We need to stay ready with the Legion across the river.”

Jolene nodded in agreement, “How do you like serving in the Army?”

“Man, it’s my life,” he said, “I joined when I was sixteen - don’t know how to do anything else.”

“And you’re still a sergeant?”

“Yeah, well,” he shrugged, “I didn’t want to get promoted out of the field. I didn’t join up to drive a desk.”

“That’s some dedication,” Jolene said.

“Thanks,” he grinned, “I only wish some of the soldiers under my command would share it.”

“Huh, sounds like you’re a little disappointed in your troops.”

“Disappointed? They aren’t called the Misfits for nothing,” McCredie shook his head, “They’re undisciplined, lazy, and they have absolutely no escrit de corps. The squad leader’s got some promise, kid named Mags, but as for the rest… I don’t see much hope. I’m gonna make them shape up if it kills me, though. Or them, for that matter.”

“Maybe I can help you whip them into shape,” Jolene offered.

Boone turned his head away and bit his tongue to try and keep from laughing. Jolene was good, but she wasn’t sergeant good. She could barely fire a gun, let alone teach a squad how. Her style of fighting was completely off the book, not at all fit to teach a soldier how to fight.

Sergeant McCredie laughed, “You’re welcome to try - hell, maybe they’ll listen to somebody they don’t see as an authority figure.”

“Okay, I’ll see what I can do.”

She went out and looked for the Misfits. One soldier pointed her to a tent and told her they were probably still asleep. At 8 AM? Boone laughed to himself, certainly no NCR soldier would be sleeping that late.

He was proved wrong when Jolene walked into their tent. The squad was passed out on their beds. Trash littered the floor, empty bottles of Sunset Sarsaparilla were turned over, half-empty cans on beans were open on a crate turned into a table. Jolene took one look at the place, scowled, and walked out.

“Can you believe they live like that?” she asked Boone as they left the tent. She sat at a table while she waited for the squad to wake up, “My mama woulda beat my rear end if she saw I left crap on my floor. Told me ain’t I wouldn’t grow up ‘til I learned how to be clean.”

“My sergeant used to make us do push-ups if our quarters were messy,” Boone said.

“Should bring my mama here,” I said, “She could whoop them into shape.”

Jolene laughed and shook her head.

“My mama could give me one look and I’d stop misbehavin’,” she said, “When I was littler and runnin’ off, she’d chase after me and I swear she could reach into a tree and get a switch in no time.”

Jolene leaned back into her chair and continued reminiscing, “Daddy’d come home from a two or three day delivery and find out I’d given Mama a hard time, I’d get another whoppin’. At some point, I figured I’d stop actin’ up. I’d just get whooped twice every time I’d make trouble. Guess they beat some sense into me. Damn, that’s why I still try to be so nice and keep myself looking pretty. Scared someone will recognize me and write my mama to tell her I ain’t keepin’ myself clean and I’m bein’ mean. Next thing I know I’m being hung from my toes and Mama’s hollerin’ bout hygiene and morals. Damn, I need a drink.”

Jolene dug through her pack and pulled out a beer. She took a long swift and turned to Boone.

“And don’t be tellin’ her I’m drinking before lunch,” she said.

“I won’t,” Boone said.

“Good,” she nodded.

By the time she finished her beer, the squad had woken up. They left their tent at different times.

Jolene turned to Boone, “Let’s whoop these kids into shape.”

She got up and walked to one of the troops. Boone smiled when she wasn’t looking.


	7. Chapter 7

Jolene had talked first to Poindexter, but left in the middle of the conversation and grubbled about basic manners as she stormed off. She talked to Razz and laughed at the suggestion of hooking the rest of the squad on Psycho. She talked to Mags and told her she liked her idea, more time training was a great idea. But when she turned to leave, she shook her head and told Boone the squad was going to fail because she couldn’t help them with their combat skills.

“Lord didn’t give me any,” she said looking up, “Why would he want me teachin’ other folks how to fight? What am I supposed to do?”

“There’s still one more guy,” Boone said.

“Huh?” Jolene turned around.

Boone nodded his head to the tall boy sitting in a chair by their tent.

“You haven’t talked to him,” Boone said, “He might have an idea that doesn’t involve you wielding a gun.”

Boone had been meaning to teach her how to shoot straight for weeks, but never found a good time between her sleeping and him keeping her away from a second death. He would have to soon, too, or else when she finally confronted Benny, he would kill her for good.

Jolene and Boone walked over to the last soldier. His name tag read, “O’hanrahan”. She started talking to him while Boone tried to figure out how to pronounce the boy’s last name.

“Y’all sure are a big ol’ hero,” he said, “Gotta write my mama, tell her I met you.”

“Aww, well,” Jolene blushed and forgot what she was going to say.

Boone gave Jolene a look, she cleared her throat.

“What can you tell me about your squad mates?” she asked. Her stance had changed and her voice went a tone higher.

“They’re mostly pretty nice,” O’hanrahan said while standing up, “Poindexter showed me how to make fireworks! Razz kinda scares me sometimes, but I don’t mind. He’s had a hard life.”

“How’d you end up here?”

“Well, as it turns out, we had a string of bad harvests a few years back,” he said, “Pa said he couldn’t afford to feed but three youngins, or we’d starve. As the biggest one it was my job to go join the Army so’s my sisters could eat and so’s we wouldn’t all be killed by raiders and Jesus would love us. It’s alright, I guess. I don’t like all the fighting we gotta do, though.”

“Why you ‘fraid of fightin’?’ she asked.

“I ain’t scared!” O’hanrahan defended, “I just don’t like hurting folks, is all. Ma always used to tell me “boy, you’re the biggest and the strongest, so you mind yourself!” Every day she told me that. Guess I done took it to heart.”

Boone sighed, it was like Jolene had met her counterpart. They talked the same, he felt he was listening to Jolene talk to herself. She all but gushed in front of him. It annoyed him, they were supposed to be making the squad better and she felt the need to flirt with yet another boy.

“I understand,” she nodded, “My daddy always said, “Jolene, you been runnin’ too damn fast, better slow down ‘fore you light the grass ablaze and come face to face with the Devil himself.” Now, I can’t barely bring myself to more than a mosey.”

O’hanrahan laughed, Boone couldn’t understand anything Jolene just said or why it was so funny.

“Tell me a little more ‘bout yourself,” she said.

“Well, I was born on a farm out in California,” he said, “Weren’t much - me, Ma and Pa, my two sisters and about forty acres of corn and brahmin. Didn’t never have no problems really, except for some lean years. Then I joined up and got shipped out her to New Vegas. What about you, where you come from?”

“I was raised in a small settlement in Idaho,” she said, “My mama was a doctor, learned everything she knew from them Followers folks but left, never told me why. My daddy was a courier like me. Didn’t ever do nothin’ ‘till I was seventeen. My daddy didn’t want me workin’ none, spoilt me rotten.”

“Then what happened?”

“Daddy got jumped during a big haul,” Jolene explained, “He got his leg shot as a warning. Hell, he handed everything over and said “I got two girls I gotta go home to see.” Mama didn’t make enough to support all three of us, so I picked up my rotten butt and started bein’ a courier, like my daddy. Brought me out here and got tangled in this whole war. And here I am.”

“You sure are a long way from home,” he said.

“Yeah, miss home every night,” she said, “But it sure is nice seein’ other places, huh?”

“Sure is.”

“Anyway, Sergeant McCredie asked me to talk to you about gettin’ your squad in shape,” she said, “Got any ideas?”

“To me?” he sounded surprised, “Well, I’ll tell you what I think this squad needs: a little more basic human niceness.”

Human what? That’s the dumbest shit Boone had ever heard. Jolene smiled and nodded as if she understood.

“You think?” she asked.

“That’s right,” O’hanrahan nodded, “Folks just don’t talk to other folks, and everybody’s always cross with each other.”

“Damn right,” Jolene said, “Want me to talk to ‘em?”

“That’d be swell,” he said, “Only, if they knew the idea came from me, they probably wouldn’t take you serious no more, so maybe you oughta think about it first. And I sure hope you’re more convincing than I am, or they ain’t gonna listen.”

“Okay, I’ll try ‘n’ convince them,” Jolene said.

“Okay!” he smiled.

“Boone, will you wait here while I run around to talk to everyone?”

“I’ll sit tight,” Boone nodded.

Jolene walked away, leaving Boone with O’hanrahan. There was an awkward moment before O’hanrahan struck up a conversation.

“So you been traveling with the Courier?” he asked.

Is that what people called her?

“Yeah.”

“You two together?”

“No,” Boone shook his head.

O’hanrahan nodded, “Okay. How long you been traveling together?”

“About a month.”

“So you wouldn’t mind if I got with her, then? She’s gorgeous.”

“That’s up to her,” Boone said through a clenched jaw.

“I know. Just wanted to make sure I ain’t gonna be causin’ some sorta trouble between you two,” he put his hands up.

Boone didn’t answer.

“She’s got quite the fame,” he said, “And you been with her the whole time?”

Boone nodded.

“Is she like they say?”

“What do they say?”

“Said she save them fellas in Nelson even though they asked her to mercy kill ‘em,” O’hanrahan, “Said she talked them Khans into giving up hostages. Said all she did was have a conversation, said ain’t nobody can say no to her. That’s all true?”

“Yeah,” Boone nodded, “I’ve seen her talk a guy into taking a gun off her forehead during a standoff. She swears up and down that it’s the only thing she knows how to do.”

“Is it not?”

“She’s handy with a knife,” Boone said, “And she knows how to cook.”

“She cooks?”

Boone nodded, “Remakes her mother’s recipes from memory. She’s smart but doesn’t flaunt it like your squadmate.”

“Poindexter? Yeah, he can be mean sometimes, he’s got a big ego but he usually just flaunts it on people he don’t know well.”

“I can tell.”

“Were you in the First Recon?” O’hanrahan asked, he was looking at Boone’s beret.

“Yeah, I was.”

“What happened?”

“My tour ended,” he said, “Had a girl waiting for me to marry her.”

“And?”

“Married her,” Boone said, “Moved down to Novac.”

“What happened? Did you up and leave your wife?”

“You don’t know what you’re asking.”

“Oh, man I’m sorry,” O’hanrahan said, “Didn’t mean to ask nothin’ I ain’t supposed to… How’d you meet the Courier?”

“She snuck up on me,” Boone said, “Passing through Novac one night and asked me to go with her.”

Jolene came back.

“Hey Boone,” she said, “O’hanrahan. I’ve got some good news. Your squad’s got some human niceness and they’re gonna start spreadin’ it around.”

“That’s great,” he said, “Thanks for the help.”

“Hopefully everything will work out,” Jolene nodded. She turned to Boone, “Hey, you mind if I, um-”

“I’ll go make myself busy,” Boone said before she could finish her sentence.

“Thanks,” she smiled.

Boone took a seat over at the tables he and Jolene had sat at a couple hours ago. He watched Jolene flirt with O’hanrahan. She laughed, put her hand against his chest, and let him kiss her cheek. After few minutes, Jolene and O’hanrahan went into the tent. Boone looked away and bounced his leg while he waited.

“Damn, did O’hanrahan just go in there with the Courier?” Razz asked Mags, “I didn’t think she’d go for him, didn’t think he’d even sleep with a girl before settling down.”

“Oh, Razz, give it a rest,” Mags rolled her eyes, “He has needs, so does she.”

“Yeah,” Razz laughed, “She could also have anyone she wants with those looks. Why go with O’hanrahan?”

“I don’t know,” Mags said, “He’s nice, got a country charm, so does she.”

Razz turned to Boone, “Hey man, you know the Courier. Know why she would want to get with O’hanrahan?”

Boone turned to Razz, “They’re the same person. Same upbringing, same personality.”

“Huh, that’ll do it,” Razz nodded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've almost finished this story, I just finished writing 22 before I posted this and I'm so excited. I only have a little more to write before I'm completely done :D Anyways, I hope y'all like this as much as I do, I really have a lot of fun thinking about all the possibilities I could do when them


	8. Chapter 8

# 

Jolene walked with a limp. It was hard to tell, with her slow pace, but Boone noticed. The boy from Camp Golf must’ve been too rough on her. Boone would have suggested they stopped and rest but they we so near her end goal and she was getting antsy.

“Boone, I’m gonna kill him,” she said, “I’m gonna go up there and look him in the eye and tell him he made the biggest mistake o’ his life. Ain’t nobody shoot at me and get away with it. Nobody.”

It sounded like she was trying to convince herself more than she was Boone.

“How are you going to do it?” Boone asked, “You should make a plan before going in there and realizing you don’t know what to do.”

Jolene turned to Boone, she seemed slightly hurt. But she nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, I don’t wanna get hurt again,” she said, “I don’t know if I can take another shot to the head and still come out kickin’... I was thinkin’ I could seduce him and get him alone so-”

“No,” Boone said. He didn’t care about her sleeping around with NCR boys who had some amount of respect for her, but this… this was something he wouldn’t tolerate, “That’s a bad idea. Think of something else.”

Jolene huffed, “I don’t know. I gotta get him alone somehow. I know I can take on one man by myself, did that ‘fore I met you, but I can’t take more than one. I been collectin’ all this stuff he left trailin’ through the wastes. ‘S why I been knowin’ where to go. Maybe I could show all this crap to someone he knows and get their help.”

Boone nodded, “That would be a good idea.”

Jolene nodded, “It just don’t feel real. I been thinkin’ of gettin’ my revenge for weeks and now I can see the damn city he’s been sitting in all this time. It’s right there, just waitin’ for me.”

She sat on a rock and sighed. Boone looked down at her.

“I need to rest, my legs hurt,” she said.

He nodded and took a seat down near her.

He watched as she messed with her Pip-Boy. Her hair fell into her eyes while she looked through her files. She hadn’t let her hair get too long, it stopped at her chin. It was light brown and shone in the hot Mojave sun. She took care of it too, every chance she got, she cleaned it. She pushed her hair out of her face and looked up.

Boone looked away. 

“Did you see that?” Jolene asked, “I think them Legion boys are back.”

Boone looked in the direction she was pointing, a group of Legion assassins were running their way. He pulled his gun over her shoulder and stepped in front of Jolene. He fired shot after shot, the legionnaires dropped like flies. He was done in a couple minutes.

“Want to get some ears?” he asked with a small smirk.

Jolene smiled and got up, “Hell yeah.”

She made her way to the dead Legionnaires and pulled her knife out. She knelt over each of them, took their helmets off, and cut their left ear off. She looked up to Boone and laughed.

“You caught me red-handed,” she said putting her bloody hands up.

He gave a small laugh.

“These would be good targets for you to shoot at,” he said.

“What, you gonna teach me how to shoot like you and them Recon folks?” she asked, “Good luck, my daddy already tried and he was the best gunslinger of all of southwestern Idaho.”

“I thought you said he got shot.”

“I said all of he was the best in southwestern Idaho,” Jolene shot back, “He got shot in northeastern Idaho and let me tell you something, you better not be goin’ round insultin’ my daddy. You may be my best friend but that ain’t give you the right to be throwin’ things around like “I thought you said he got shot” and all that. I’ll bring that stuff up when I want to all right?”

“I’m sorry,” Boone said, “I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“Yeah,” she huffed, “Well, I forgive you… sorry for goin’ off.”

“It’s okay,” he nodded, “I was out of line.”

Jolene nodded, “So you gonna teach me how to shoot like you or what?”

Boone nodded, “I’ll give it a shot.”

He drug one of the Legionnaires to a nearby rock and propped the corpse up. Jolene had pulled the hunting rifle she kept on her back as decoration. She at least knew how to load it. It made Boone’s job a little easier. She held it like she had seen Boone hold his gun. Or at least how she thought he did. Boone got close to her and guided her hands to the right places.

“Put your right hand here,” he said, “Left hand here. Don’t put the butt of the gun against your shoulder when you fire it, hold it a few inches away.”

“Why?”

“The recoil could hurt you,” Boone explained, “Could break your shoulder.”

“Oh, I don’t want that.”

“Yeah,” Boone nodded.

“What’s first?”

Boone aimed her gun.

“Stay focused on your target,” he said, “Take your time, pick your shots, tell yourself what you’re shooting at.”

“The chest,” she muttered.

“Exhale before you fire,” he continued,” Squeeze the trigger, don’t jerk it.”

“Focus, exhale, squeeze,” Jolene muttered.

She took the shot and hit the dead legionnaire in the abdomen.

“Good,” Boone nodded, “Try another shot. Do you know how to get a new shell in the chamber?”

Jolene nodded and showed Boone that she could. He nodded in approval. She took aim again and whispered to herself.

“Focus, exhale, squeeze.”

Boone could barely make out what she had said before the gun let the Mojave know it was in working order. This time, Jolene hit the corpse’s chest.

She smiled, “I hit the chest.”

“Good. Do it again.”

Jolene repeated once, twice, three times successfully before Boone stopped her.

“Now that you can shoot, you don’t want to run out of ammo,” he said.

“Think I’m a good shot now, Boone?” she asked smugly.

“You’re better than you were ten minutes ago.”

“Well… thanks,” she said, “I ‘preciate you helpin’ me out.”

Boone only nodded.


	9. Chapter 9

Camp McCarran was the biggest NCR camp Jolene had visited. She looked around and nodded.

“It’s big,” she said, “Wonder where I should start.”

Boone shrugged. He was there to watch her back and make sure she didn’t do anything stupid. Telling her where to go wasn’t one of his priorities. She walked inside the main building first and turned left. It was as if she knew where to go. She had made her way right into Colonel Hsu’s office.

“Look who it is,” Hsu said, “I haven’t had the privilege, but I’m told you’ve been an angel on our shoulder. What can we do for you?”

“I’m here to lend a hand,” she said, “Anything I can do?”

“Hmm... you don't cook by any chance, do you? Farber's doing his best, but it's hard to manage an army with half my staff in line for the latrine,” Hsu said, “Honestly, we’ve been fighting a lot of fires. The Fiends keep pressing their position fro Vault 3. We've got the Legion breathing down our necks across the river. We actually took an officer alive last week, but so far he hasn't spoken a word.”

“I bet I could make the Legion fella talk,” she said.

“I have Lieutenant Boyd on that already, and she's excellent. But I think she's hit a wall,” Hsu told her, “Talk to her if you’d like. See if she has any use for you. Her office is right above mine, but I think she might be interrogating right now. So she'd be upstairs on the other side of the building.”

“Okay, bye now,” she said.

Jolene left Hsu’s office. Boone followed her upstairs to where Lieutenant Boyd was interrogating the legionnaire. She turned to Boone.

“Wait here,” she said, “I’ll be out in ten minutes.”

“Want to put money on it?” Boone asked, turning slightly before she went in.

“Is that a bet, Boone?” she turned around, her hand was on the handle.

He nodded.

“Okay, 50 caps says I get this douche talkin’ within ten minutes,” she said, “If I ain’t out by then, caps are yours. Deal?”

He shook her hand, “Deal.”

She laughed, “The time is 1:46 if I ain’t out by 1:56 you’ll be 50 caps richer.”

She went in the interrogation room, leaving Boone in the hall to wait. He leaned on the wall and crossed his arms while he waited. He didn’t hear much from the other side of the closed door, just the occasionally loud comment from the captive legionnaire. Boone knew he was about to be short 50 caps, didn’t even know why he would bet his money on her best skill.

Just listening to her talk to other men was enough for Boone to want to drop what he was doing and follow her orders. Maybe that’s why he started following her in the first place, he was just another man she wrapped around her finger. Could it be? No, probably not. She saw him as a friend, not a pawn. Did she see those other men as pawns?

Boone shook the thought from his head, but it soon returned.

Maybe her charm is a mix of her words and her looks. She has a silver tongue, there’s no denying it. And she was gorgeous. Her caramel hair, her blue eyes that must have captured the pre-war sky and stolen it from everyone, and the way she held herself. Somehow, she was the definition of feminine, even in her blood-stained boots and the oversized jacket she had gotten her hands on before she met Boone. She was tough, there were tall-tales about her adventures; she took down a whole Legion camp single-handedly, she sent Ghouls to space, and most unbelievable, she had risen from her grave hell-bent on revenge. She was tough, but she also had the trust of anyone she wanted. Boone knew why.

Jolene came back out of the room, “1:53 and I got him to spill everything about the Legion and Caesar's bad health, pay up Boone.”

She held her hand out. Boone scoffed and fished out his caps. He counted fifty and gave them to her. She flashed a bright grin and dropped the caps into a sack.

“Know what, Boone?”

“What?”

“I’m ready to go kill Benny,” she said, “Gonna kill him. Ain’t lettin’ that sonofabitch enjoy his sweet life in that damn casino no more. Gonna kick the damn door down and shoot ‘em like you showed me.”

Boone only smiled, “Let’s do it.”


	10. Chapter 10

The first thing Jolene did when she and Boone stepped out of the monorail station was look up. He couldn’t blame her, it’s the first thing everyone does during their first time in this city. It was the first thing he did. The hotels were so much taller up close than from outside of the city. She kept her head up as she slowly walked down the stairs of the station. When they reached the bottom. One of the securitrons rode up and invited Jolene to the Luck 38. He had forgotten about them, they aren’t the most settling presence to have nearby when you’re drunk and trying to chat up a girl. He could have gone a few more days without seeing it again, but it was her decision to come here. At least he got to see that her charm was not effective on something.

“That’s nice and everything, Victor, but point me to the Tops,” she said, “I gotta score to settle.”

“Sorry, rambler,” the robot -Victor- said, “I know you’re fixin’ to serve up some vengeance, but I’m gonna have to point you to the Lucky 38 first. Mr. House is itchin’ to meet you.”

Jolene either was too tired to argue or knew it was no use.

She nodded, “All right, I’ll go there first thing.”

Boone was left on the steps of the Lucky 38 when Victor told Jolene she had to go in alone. He remembered when he first came to the Strip. He had followed Manny through the gate, but decided he didn’t want to go to Gomorrah and he wanted to see the Lucky 38 instead. But, he was denied access and told no one was allowed entrance into the casino. That’s when Carla introduced herself to him, when he walked back down the stairs to the Lucky 38. Said he looked lost and invited him to go to the Ultra Luxe with her and her friends. He lost track of Manny after that, caught up with him three days later when he was with Carla.

Thinking back, that must have been the start of her and Manny’s bad relationship.

Boone sat down on the steps and waited for Jolene to come back out.

She must have been a bigger piece in this war that Boone realized. No one had ever talked to Mr. House face-to-face, none that Boone had ever heard about. Maybe Mr. House wanted to meet with her because of her reputation with the NCR. Maybe not. Maybe he was the receiver of the delivery she died over, she never did tell Boone much about it other than it led to her attempted murder. He had only picked up what she had been carrying during the conversation she had with Jessup back in Boulder City, never to where she was delivering.

Jolene came back out of the casino sometime later. Some travelers stopped to watch her leave the Lucky 38 and whispered about her. Jolene paid no attention. She walked down the stairs to where Boone waited. He got up as she approached.

“House gave me the presidential suite,” she said, “Want to set up shop ‘fore we go put Benny down?”

Boone nodded and followed her lead inside the casino. During the short walk between the front door and the elevator, Boone looked around to take in as much as he could.

It looked like a regular casino that hadn’t been taken care of for two hundred years. He guessed that made sense. There was some trash on the floor and everything was covered in a layer of dust. Many slot machines were set up around the floor. The stairs were weird, there were to sets with empty space in between them. The old world was weird.

“Where to partner?” Victor asked Jolene.

“Presidential suite,” she said.

Boone and Jolene entered the small elevator. The ride up to the suite was under a minute, despite it being on the 43rd floor. The elevator opened up to the suite. Jolene took her time to look around. The was a kitchen and dining room, a large master bedroom, another bedroom with two beds, a recreational room, and a bathroom. Boone went to the guest bedroom to put some of his things away while she did her own thing in her room. He reorganized his ammo and put away some of the random things that Jolene had asked him to hang onto. He took the toy dinosaur, the teddy bear, and the broken egg timer to her room.

“Do you want this stuff back?” he asked.

Jolene looked at the things in his hands and nodded.

She set her stuff aside, “Thanks. I’ve got everything packed up, I’m ready to do this.”

Boone followed Jolene out of the casino and down the Strip.

“Where’s the Tops?” she muttered as they walked down the steps of the Lucky 38.

“It’s down that way,” Boone pointed left.

Their weapons were confiscated as soon as they stepped foot in the Tops. Jolene took a moment to look around before a suave man walked up to her.

“Hey baby, the names Swank,” he said.

“Call me Jolene,” she smiled, “Are you in charge here?”

“Benny runs the business,” he said, “I run the day-to-day. I’m his right-hand guy, you dig?”

“Well, you oughta know somethin’ ‘bout Benny,” Jolene said.

“Really?” Swank asked, “You got something to say about the big boss, huh? Well, why don't you say it to his face instead of yapping at me?”

“You'll see, and I don’t think you’re gonna like it,” she said, “Seems Benny’s makin' his own play.”

“Huh? What are you talking about?” Swank asked.

“Benny tried to kill me and stole a platinum chip I was hired to deliver,” Jolene explained.

“That doesn’t…” Swank bit his lip and thought, “Why would he pull a stunt like that? Got anything else to offer?”

“He tried to make it look like an accident,” she said, “Just a traveler killed and robbed in the wasteland.”

“He’s trying to pull a fast one on the big man?” Swank said, “Crazy bastard. Got anything else?”

“Benny must think this chip will let him take over the Strip,” Jolene explained.

“Jesus, I can’t believe it,” Swank shook his head, “After all House did to set us up with this swank joint. I don’t suppose there’s more?”

Boone tuned out of the conversation but soon he was given his weapons back and was following Jolene to the elevators.

“Here’s the plan,” she said when the doors shut, “I gotta kill him, this is somethin’ I need to do on my own. Just like your business back in Novac. When we get up there, I just want you to stand at the door to keep him from leavin’. I’ll take care of the rest.”

Boone nodded.

The doors opened to the 13th floor. Jolene and Boone slowly walked down the hall to the big double doors midway. A plaque beside them indicated that this was Benny’s Suite.

The pair walked in. Boone stood at the doors and held his gun across his chest.

“What in the goddamn?” Benny nearly spat out his drink when he saw Jolene, “Let’s keep this in the groove, hey? Smooth moves. Smooth… Hello! That broad everyone saw go in the Lucky 38, that was you? Oh shit.”

“Mr. House wants the Platinum Chip,” she said, “Hand it over.”

“You don’t wanna do that, baby,” he said, “Not without hearing what I got to say first.”

“No deal,” she said, pulling her gun, “Time for you to die.”

Benny jumped from his barstool as Jolene pulled the trigger. Unlucky for her, the gun had jammed. She dropped it and lunged at him. Benny pulled his gun and before he could shoot, Boone shot the gun out of his hand. Jolene tackled Benny and cracked his head with the back of her Pip-Boy. His blood spurted on the screen and Jolene’s face.

“Get off me you crazy bitch!” he snapped trying to push her off.

He reached for his gun. Jolene grabbed his wrist and yanked his arm. She grabbed the gun and beat him with it instead of shooting him. She was relentless and didn’t let up as Benny’s angry insults turned into pleads for his life. But Jolene didn’t listen. She only grunted and screamed as she hit Benny. 

He was dead for at least five minutes before Boone pulled her off of his corpse. Jolene struggled for a moment before calming down. He let her go after she stopped fighting.

Jolene went to the bloody, mangled corpse of Benny and dug through his pockets. She pulled out an oversized poker chip, it was platinum. This must have been what she had been talking about for the past few weeks. She pocketed the chip and got up.

Boone followed her downstairs, where she explained to Swank what had gone down, then back to the Lucky 38 where she cleaned herself off.

Later, Jolene walked in the doorway of Boone’s room, her hair was wet and she wore different clothes. Just a tee shirt and shorts. She was smaller than she made herself look.

“Do you want to get a drink?” she asked, “House said there’s a cocktail lounge a floor up.”

“Sure.”


	11. Chapter 11

Jolene put two glasses on the bar and filled them up with whiskey. Boone was seated at the bar, she was behind the bar.

“Tell you what,” she said taking a sip, “Never felt better seein’ the piece o’ shit beggin’ for his life while I killed him with the same gun he killed me with.”

Boone took a drink from his glass and nodded.

“Didn’t know this much weight woulda been lifted off my chest,” she said, “Woulda done it sooner if I’d known.”

She took another long sip.

Boone looked into his glass and sighed.

“I owe you some explanations, Jolene,” he said, “Things you need to know about me.”

“Guess I told you plenty 'bout me,” Jolene said, she took yet another long sip, “Your turn to talk.”

“Carla… I tracked her down,” Boone started, “Southeast, near the river. They were...selling her. Saw it through my scope. Whole place was swarming with Legion. Hundreds of them bidding for things no man has a right to. I just had my rifle with me. Just me, against all of them, so… I took the shot.”

“Better for her to die than live a Legion slave,” Jolene said.

She refilled Boone’s glass.

“Yeah. The things they do to women…” Boone shook his head, “That’s worse than death. There was no choice in what I did. It was more like being forced to watch something you can’t stop.”

“You make it sound like Carla’s death was fate,” Jolene said.

“It was gonna be something,” he said, “If I’d never met Carla, it would’ve been something else. I should’ve never gotten close to her. I’ve got bad things coming to me. You’d better keep your distance, too.”

“Why do you think you’ve got bad things comin’?”

“Because fair is fair,” he sighed.

“I don’t understand,” Jolene said.

“Bitter-Springs,” he explained, “There was a miscommunication. That’s how they wrote it up in the report. We did what we were there to do. Lot of people got killed. That’s war. Maybe looking back you’d do things differently, but that’s not how it works. In the field, you hesitate, you or someone you care for dies. That’s what they teach from day one.”

“Sounds like you got some regrets,” Jolene said.

“You don’t come out of a tour of duty without regrets,” Boone said, “It’s best just not to think about it.”

“Do you think you got bad karma ‘cause of Bitter Springs?”

“Life has a way of punishing you for the mistakes you make. Big enough mistake, punishment can take a while. Mine’s not over.”

She filled his glass again.

“Maybe you can make up for your mistakes.”

“A murderer who does good deeds is still a murderer,” Boone shook his head, “And he’ll still get his judgment. I left the NCR when my tour was up. Had enough of war. Decided I was gonna start over. None of it made a difference in the end.”

“Do you think ‘bout Bitter Springs a lot?”

“Always,” Boone said, “Even when I sleep.”

“Maybe it would be best to go back there,” she said, “Confront your demons.”

“I don’t think so,” Boone said, “It won’t change anything. And that’s a memory I don’t want refreshed.”

Before Jolene could say anything, Boone left and went to his room.

He paced, he was angry. Thinking about all the wrong he had down. He stopped and clenched his fists. He took a few deep breaths and decided to take a bath to calm down. He went to the bathroom and filled up a bath with warm water. Boone got in, the heat soothed his aching muscles. He sighed and thought of anything but Bitter Springs and Carla but everything seemed to fuel his anger.

Boone counted to ten before trying again.

He thought about how Jolene had interacted with a child earlier. She had been so kind and played along with the game he was playing for a short while before moving on. He imagined that’s how Carla would have been with their child.

He heard drunk stumbling from outside the bathroom. Jolene must have come back down from the lounge.

When Boone finished his bath, he redressed and walked out of the bathroom.

Jolene was passed out in the doorway of her room. Boone picked her up and moved her to her bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just struggled writing another chapter because my laptop was at my Mom's house and the charger was at my Dad's house for like four days it sucked. But I just charged up my laptop so I could update this soo


	12. Chapter 12

In the morning, Jolene was gone.

Victor let Boone know that she had left shortly before he awoke.

“She said you need to stay here until she comes back and she don’t want you to follow her,” Victor told him.

“Where did she go?”

“That’s between her and Mr. House,” Victor said, “I’m not allowed to tell you just yet. But I bet she might tell you when she gets back, partner.”

Boone walked away from the robot he had been left with.

To pass the time he stayed in the recreation room and listened to the radio. It was already tuned into the station Jolene often listened to while traveling. In some weird way, listening to it made Boone feel as if he was with her and not alone with a giant robot that gave him the creeps.

He flipped through one of the magazines she had left behind. It wasn’t something he cared to read, but it was something to do. It was a pre-war fashion magazine. Boone hadn’t thought that she would be into this sort of thing. He mindlessly flipped through the pages, each advertising long-gone products and different beauty routines. One article he came across had a picture of a hairstyle very similar to Jolene’s. It also instructed how to achieve such a hairstyle. The top corner of the page was folded down. It took Boone a minute to realize that Jolene must have been using it as a reference to style her hair. He laughed at the thought of her setting the magazine up next to a mirror and carefully following the steps listed in the magazine.

Thinking further, he wondered how long she had been doing her hair that way. What did she do beforehand? Did she have nice hair or did she let it be a mess like most women did? He’d never know, it would be weird to ask. How would that interaction even go?

‘Hey, Jolene I went through your magazine and found what you base your hair off of. Has your hair always been nice?’

‘Yes Boone, by the way, I need you to stay further back away from me.’

That wouldn’t work out well at all. He’d better just keep it to himself and never mention that he went through her magazine.

He put it back down and looked for something else to do.

Jolene returned the next day, late in the evening.

Boone heard the elevator chime and open, then Victor announces the floor she was on.

He left the kitchen and went to the foyer, but Jolene had already retreated into her room. She must have been soaked in blood or bleeding herself. There was a trail of bloody footsteps spanning the space between her bedroom and the elevator. Boone knocked on her door, trying not the break it down. He wanted an explanation.

“You can come in,” Jolene called.

Boone entered her room, his suspicion was confirmed.

Jolene was covered in blood from head to toe.

“Where the hell were you?” Boone tried to keep from raising his voice, but he was pissed. Pissed that she would leave without him. Pissed that she left him alone. Pissed that she didn’t tell him that she was leaving. Pissed that she could have gotten herself killed and he would have never known.

Jolene turned around with a small smile on her face. She held up the head of Caesar.

“I had to go finish my job with Mr. House... and I killed Caesar,” she said, she smiled and tried to hand the head to him.

He blinked a few times at it. It was disgusting. He could see the neck bone and loose… muscle stuff hanging down. Blood dripped from the pig’s head onto his boots. If he was in a better mood he wouldn’t mind having his blood stain his boots, but now wasn’t the time for that at all. He shoved it back.

“Are you fucking kidding me? You left me here alone,” Boone snapped, “You didn’t tell me that you were leaving or where you were going or how long you would be gone. I had to find out from a robot that you left.”

“Whoa,” Jolene gave Boone a look, “I don’t gotta tell you everything, Boone.”

“We’re supposed to be partners,” he said, “Partners keep each other in the loop.”

“What so I don’t tell you one thing now I’m the bag guy?”

“You could have died in there and I would have never known!” Boone was yelling now, his hands waved with his words, “Worse could have happened! Do you have any idea what they would have done to you if they kept you alive? The type of life you would have to live? You could have been made a slave and I wouldn’t have been able to stop it in time. I’m here to back you up, I’m here to help you. I can’t do that if you leave without telling me!”

Jolene took a step back, her mouth had fallen open. She seemed as if she were shocked and hadn’t even realized what he was telling her.

“I’m not asking you to tell me about every little thing,” he said, “But I don’t want you to leave me out of giant damn things, like assassinating Caesar and wiping out the whole Fort!”

“I didn’t see it like that,” she said, “I’m really sorry. I won’t- I won’t leave you in the dark again.”

Boone nodded. He was still mad. “Thanks.”

She slowly walked away and locked the bathroom door behind her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a college essay due in three days but am I working on it? Nope, writing fanfiction for nine-year-old video games instead.
> 
>  
> 
> No sweat though I have a few to choose from.


	13. Chapter 13

The pair were back on the road the next day. They traveled without talking to each other, except when alerting the other of an enemy. Other than that, the only thing that filled the silence was the distant sound of gunfire and the radio Jolene’s Pip-Boy picked up.

Boone followed her to the Northeast. He wasn’t sure of the exact details, but he knew they were paying a tribe a visit. He didn’t know who for or why but he didn’t feel like asking any questions either. Not after last night.

At midday, they arrived in the tribe’s territory. But a man stopped them from going any further.

“Whoa there, girl,” a middle-aged man held his hand up, “You better slow down, or you’ll get blown up like the rest of the idiots who thought they’d scavenge in Boomer territory.”

“Thanks for the warning,” she nodded, “What’s going on past those signs?”

“Oh lordy,” the man sighed, “You haven’t heard of the Boomers? What rock have you been living under? They’re a bunch of artillery-slingin’, grenade lobbin’, odd jobs camping out in Nellis. Wander into their territory and you’re as good as mincemeat!”

“Is there a way to get past?”

“There is a way,” he said, “and I’ll tell you… for a little wager?”

“Let’s hear it,” Jolene nodded.

“Well, I know the secret to get past,” he said, “If you give me the caps, I’ll tell you. If you make it back alive I’ll double your money!”

“You’ve got yourself a bet,” Jolene nodded.

She handed the man her caps and he gave her a slip of paper.

“Okay, here you go,” he said, “That page has the details, but it’s all in the timing as you move from building to building. I’ll be watching, so I’ll know if you’ve made it to the gate or not. Remember, there’s 600 caps in it if you make it.”

Jolene walked slowly forward and stopped just at the edge of the high rocks. She read the slip of paper and nodded to herself. She looked to Boone.

“Wait here,” she ordered.

“No. I’m going with you.”

“It’s dangerous,” she said, “I don’t want you to get hurt doin’ somethin’ I gotta.”

“I’m not waiting here,” Boone said.

She huffed, “Fine, read over the directions and follow my lead.”

Boone read the paper and handed it back to her

“I’m ready,” he nodded.

“Okay,” she said, “We’re gonna run to those houses, then that should get us close to the gate.”

Jolene took a few deep breaths and nodded, “Okay, go!”

She took off towards the first building, running faster than Boone thought she could move. He ran after her, catching up quickly. He kept at her pace.

There was a loud whistle as the first missile was fired towards the two. Jolene ducked into a blown out house, Boone close behind her. She took cover under an old table and Boone slid under the part of the house that still had a roof.

For a few minutes, Boone thought surely he would go deaf or die before the night fell. But for a moment or two, there was a break in the bombardment.

“C’mon!” Jolene said. She took of to the next house.

He stayed on her heels as she ran. Jolene ducked into the next house as the next few missiles were fired. She backed herself against the furthest wall.

The house shook as the artillery hit it. There was a look in Jolene’s eye, unfamiliar to Boone. It looked as if she was going to pee her pants, but was also having fun.

At the next break, Jolene left the house and started running again. She skipped the next house, even as the next round started firing. Boone could see the missiles nearing, they were still too far from the next house. One went off above them. She staggered but still moved forward. Boone picked up the pace and pulled her with him. He pushed her into the next house and shoved her on the ground as another missile exploded behind him. The force of the blast knocked Boone over. He looked up, the house’s roof was giving in. He shielded Jolene as yet another missile hit the house. The roof caved in, barely missing the two.

When the third round of bombardment ended, Boone crawled off of Jolene.

“Sorry,” he muttered.

“We’re almost there,” she said, ignoring him.

She sat up slowly and injected herself with a stimpack. She looked to Boone and held one out to him.

“Need one?”

“No,” he shook his head.

“Okay,” she said.

Jolene got up and crouched. She glanced back at Boone, he had gotten up and was crouching too. She slowly moved through the hole in the wall and waited for Boone to come through.

“Okay, go!” she yelled without warning.

She took off towards the fence. Boone hesitated but came to his senses when he heard the next whistle of a missile flying towards him. He rushed away from the house and ran the way she did.

Jolene didn’t slow down in time to not fling her whole body against the fence. She fell sideways to the ground. Boone was luckier. He slowed down and avoided colliding head on with the fence.

He helped Jolene up.

“You good?” he asked.

“Yeah, thanks,” she nodded, “I think we’re safe now.”

She resumed her normal, slow pace.

“I didn’t know you could run so fast,” Boone said.

“Oh, used to run everywhere,” Jolene said, “Think I mentioned it before, don’t know. Used to get whooped cause I’d run from my mama when I was in trouble. Daddy used to get on to me for it. Didn’t mind the trouble cause I loved to run. Ain’t nothing like the wind in your hair and feet movin’ so fast you feel like you’re flying. Finally stopped running ‘cause my mama broke her ankle runnin’ after me one day. Ain’t never forgave myself. Can’t forgive myself for bringin’ harm to her.”

“I understand,” Boone nodded.

“You do?”

“My mom used to look after me,” he said, “Even though I caused her trouble. But it would be hard to forgive myself if I caused her harm.”

“Yeah,” Jolene sighed.

“Hold it right there!” one of the guard yelled, “Don’t you move!”

He aimed his big gun at Jolene. Boone wasn’t sure if it was a missile launcher or not, but it was close to it.

“How the hell did you survive that bombardment?” the guard asked.

“Simple enough,” Jolene shrugged, “It’s all in the timin’. Run, hide, run.”

“But I had you zeroed in the whole time!” he said, “No one’s that fast! Move a muscle now and I’ll blow you to pieces!”

“Whoa, I didn’t come here to hurt you,” Jolene said.

“Then just- just stay where you are!” he said, “Raquel’ll be here any second now.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've got so much going on right now that I want to get done and it's like driving me crazy. Okay like I worked on my college essay some more today and its due in two days and I'm really working hard on finishing this and getting it uploaded every day, plus I want to deep clean my room but hnnn


	14. Chapter 14

Jolene ran fetch missions for the majority of the day. Boone saw more action in that day that he cared for. He hunted giant ants, helped repair solar panels, had a history lesson about the tribe, and tagged along while Jolene played matchmaker. He saw Jolene move swiftly, trying to gain a positive reputation among the tribe. It seemed as if it worked.

At the end of the day, Jolene went to consult with the leader of the tribe.

“You can wait here while I talk,” she said, “It might be a while.”

Boone took a seat on the couch and leaned back while Jolene talked to the leader. He relaxed into the soft cushioning, crossed his arms and rested his eyes for a bit.

He took a few deep breaths and let his head fall forward.

“Boone,” he felt a hand on his arm, “Boone.”

He opened his eyes and took a few breaths.

The room was brighter than when he had last closed his eyes. He must have fallen asleep. Jolene was standing over him, her face a few inches away from his. She was squinting her eyes.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“Tryin’ to see if you were awake yet,” she said, “Didn’t wanna take your shades off.”

“Do you need something?”

“Oh, yeah,” she nodded, “We gotta leave and Mother Pearl said it might be time to wake you up.”

He got up and looked to Mother Pearl, “I apologize for falling asleep, thank you for letting me stay.”

She smiled, “It’s no problem dear, I know you must be tired. You two must be well-traveled.”

“We’ll be on our way, Mother Pearl,” Jolene said, “Be back soon.”

Jolene left, Boone followed her as they left the former base.

The first thing on her agenda was marching right up to the older man from the day before with her hand out.

“Alright, you saw it,” she said, “Got my behind up there even spent a day with ‘em and I believe you said you’d double my money.”

“Yep, here are your caps,” he said. He handed over a small bag.

She looked through, “That was 600.”

“Sorry about that,” he said, “Poor memory, here you go.”

He handed her more caps and they were on their way.

She stopped when they were down the road a bit.

“Here,” she said, she handed Boone half of the caps she earned.

“What is this for?”

“Your share of the profit,” she said, “For goin’ with me.”

“You don’t have to give this to me.”

“And you didn’t have to save my life yesterday but you did,” she said.

Without another word, Jolene put the bag in his hand and continued down the road. Her comment left a bitter taste in his mouth, but he kept it to himself.

What did she mean he didn’t have to save her life? Of course, he did. Why wouldn’t he? Doesn’t she understand she’s his closest - and only - friend? Doesn’t she know how much she means to him?

He swallowed his feelings and kept close to Jolene.

She had switched her radio station on again. Old, pre-war western music. She didn’t listen to Radio New Vegas like most. Boone related to her, he preferred music without singers - especially when Jolene forgets to switch the radio off in battle. Hearing voices only distracts him from the matters at hand, especially when he thinks Jolene is calling him for something.

Jolene turned her head, “Boone, I thought I asked you to keep your distance.”

“Sorry,” he said, “I’ll keep my distance.”

Jolene shrugged, “You can stay close for now and I can tell you what we’re goin’ to go do since you were catchin’ shut-eye when I got the lowdown.”

He nodded and walked alongside Jolene.

“It’s gonna sound crazy,” she warned, “But I know I can do it. So, y’know how the Boomers like them some airplanes… well, there’s this big one that crashed into Lake Mead ‘bout three hundred years ago. I’m gonna swim down there, attach some fancy balloons to it, and then excavate it.”

“You’re kidding, right,” Boone asked.

“Honest to God, I’m not lyin',” she said, “That’s all we gotta do, too. They’re gonna get it once I give ‘em the green light.”

“If this doesn’t work I’m making them pay,” he swore.

She only laughed, “It takes more than some water to kill me.”

“Nothing seems to work,” he said.

She laughed again.

They neared the lake.

“Huh, ain’t this thing go all the way to Camp Golf?” she asked.

“Yeah,” he nodded.

“Wonder how O’hanrahan’s doin’,” she mumbled.

Boone didn’t have time to think about her comment. A green, mutated, fish-man thing started booking it towards them. Boone pulled his rifle out and shot at it. The creature’s life came to an end after only a few shots. But the one-way gun fight attracted the attention of more of the creatures. Boone and Jolene were quick to take them down. She walked past the corpses and stopped at the edge of the water on an old boat ramp. Without so much as a warning, Jolene started stripping from her clothes.

Boone was quick to turn around and give her the respect and privacy she deserved. A moment later, she tapped on his shoulder.

“Will you watch my stuff? I don’t wanna get it wet,” she said, “Jacket takes days to dry completely.”

“Sure,” Boone nodded.

He took her clothes and folded them neatly while she gathered the things she needed to lift the plane. Boone looked up when he heard the water slosh. Jolene was wading in, stripped down to her underwear and holding strange equipment. The rest of her body was paler than her face but still tan.

She did mention she didn’t work until just a few years ago. Maybe she didn’t always wear that giant coat of hers just like she hadn’t always worn her hair in such a way.

He added that to the list of things never to ask her.

She swam out to the middle of the lake, then disappeared under the water. Boone waited patiently while she was under the water. He looked up to the no empty Legion fort on the other side of the lake. Even from where he stood, he could make out blood spatter that had soaked through the linen walls of the barrier. It must have been a bloodbath.

He was jealous, though he would never admit it. He wanted to be there to watch the Legion have their asses handed to them by a woman. He could only imagine the face Caesar had when she entered his tent, covered in the blood of his men.

Jolene surfaced and gasped for air. She swam back to shore and wrung her hair out.

Boone kept his eyes up as she went through her coat. She pulled out a remote device and pressed a button on it. There was a loud rumble from underneath the water. The plane rose from the bottom of the lake with a loud splash.

In the few minutes that she had left the water, the hot Nevada sun had already dried her off. For the most part. Her hair was still wet, but quickly drying.

She redressed. She first pulled her tank top and pants on. She sat down and tucked her pants into her boots. She got back up and pulled her coat on.

Jolene looked at Boone, “Let’s get back to Nellis. Gotta go recruit them for the battle.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a story outlined for a Preston/Nate story to write after this and I'm super ready for it, would y'all be interested in it? I don't want to give away too many details yet, I just feel like there isn't enough love out there for Preston :/


	15. Chapter 15

They were back on the Strip. Jolene wanted a drink after letting Crocker know the Boomers would be aiding the NCR. Jolene sat at the bar at Gomorrah, Boone sat nearby at a table. She had traded her regular outfit for a dress she had found in the ‘38. She spent all afternoon trying to pretty herself up for her night out.

On her second drink, a soldier sat down next to her.

“Hey,” she smiled and took a sip.

“Hi,” he said, “Aren’t you the gal who’s been saving our asses around here?”

“They call me the Courier,” she nodded.

“Real admirable what you’ve been doing,” he said.

“Thank,” she laughed, “You know… I have a thing for men in uniform.”

“Do you now?” he asked.

She ran a finger down his chest, “I do. But I wouldn’t mind seeing you out of yours.”

Boone didn’t care to hear the rest of the conversation. He downed the rest of his drink and soon she was gone. He ordered another beer.

Jolene was back soon. She ordered another drink and sat at the bar again. She ignored the next guy that talked to her and downed her drink. He left her after a minute when he got the hint that she wanted to be left alone.

After her fifth drink, Jolene stumbled over to Boone’s table and sat down next to him.

“Hey,” she smiled, “Boone, I wanna go. That guy sucked. He didn’t last at all.”

Boone paid the tab that he and Jolene racked up. She leaned on him while he lead her out of the casino and across the road to the ‘38. She was too drunk to walk on her own.

She had a problem holding her alcohol, and it would have to stop if she kept aiding the NCR. If she helped them secure the Hoover Dam, she would have to stop drinking. She was three years too young to be drinking in NCR territory. It wasn’t a problem now, Mr. House didn’t have any drinking-age requirements. He didn’t care.

“Boone,” she mumbled when he helped her into the elevator, “I wanna go up to the cocktail lounge.”

“No,” he said, “You’ve had enough tonight.”

“You’re not my mama,” she said. She reached her arm out to press an elevator button, “Damn, I can see straight… Boone will you press the button?”

“No,” he repeated.

She stomped her foot and stumbled back.

Boone grabbed her before she fell and hit her head. As tough as she was, another head injury wouldn’t leave her in prime condition. He had his arms wrapped around her waist, holding her close. Before he could let her go and help her regain balance, she leaned forward and kissed him. She moved her lips skillfully against his. Her lips were soft, softer than he remembered Carla’s. She tasted like straight whiskey - she had been drinking more than her share that night. Before Boone could think, before he could remind himself that she was drunk, he kissed her back.

He loosened his grip on her and ran his hands up her back. He felt the soft cotton of her dress, a precious luxury not found easily in the Mojave. Jolene ran her hands up his chest and held onto his shirt. Boone leaned further into her, his mind was blank.

Jolene hiccupped into the kiss.

Boone snapped back to reality and pulled away.

“You’re drunk,” he said.

“Yeah,” she nodded, “So’re you.”

“Not as drunk as you,” he shook his head.

The elevator opened. Jolene went straight to the kitchen and opened the fridge. She pulled out a bottle of wine, took a sip, and pressed the bottle to Boone’s lips.

“Drink it,” she said.

Boone took the bottle out of her hands, “Go to bed.”

She smiled and left the room.

Boone put the bottle of wine back in the fridge.

He walked past her room, where she sat on her bed. He went into his room and locked the door behind himself.

In the morning, Jolene sat at the dining table. She picked at her buffalo gourd seeds and sipped on a glass of water. She looked up at Boone and averted her gaze back down to her breakfast.

“I’m sorry I told you about that guy last night,” she said, “and anything else embarrassing I did. God, I can’t remember anything.”

“It’s okay,” he said, he opened the fridge and took out some sugar bombs.

He sat across from her and ate his food silently.

“I thought more about what you said,” he told her, “I think maybe you’re right. Maybe I should go to Bitter Springs. I’m not sure what I’m hoping to find there.”

“What changed your mind?” she asked.

“Nothing,” he shook his hand, “Just tired of thinking about it.”

“Okay,” she nodded, “We’ll make it a point to stop there.”


	16. Chapter 16

Jolene had left for Bitter Springs after she got over her hangover, late in the day.

The sun had already set as they approached the settlement. Boone pulled Jolene to the side.

“This is the place,” he said, “We got sent from Camp Golf, looking for some Khans who’d been making trouble with one of our settlements. I guess one of the settlers was connected because we sent everything we had. We figured this was a gang hideout, but... they’d led us to their home. There’s a ridge called Coyote Tail on the south side. That’s where we set up.”

Boone showed her to Coyote Tail and told her more.

“Canyon 37,” he said, “That’s what the NCR calls the pass down there. It was the Khans’ only escape, so we set up here to guard it while the main force attacked from the front. Standing orders were to shoot on sight. Main force got spotted too soon. We hear shooting. Then Khans started coming through Canyon 37 in bunches. It was all wrong, though. Women, kids, elderly. Wounded started coming through, too. We radioed to confirm our orders but command didn't get what we were seeing. They told us to shoot till we were out of ammo. So that’s what we did.”

“How could- how could you kill innocent people like that?” she asked.

“With the Khans, any of them can be dangerous,” he sighed deeply, “There’s a lot you can’t see through a scope. Still, I often wonder the same thing. Anyway... I don’t know why we’re here. Thought maybe it’d help me to see things better.” I’d like to stay here for the night. Think some things over.”

Jolene nodded.

“I’ll take watch if you want to rest,” he offered.

She fell asleep soon, using her arm as a pillow. It was only a few hours before Boone woke her up.

“Jolene,” he said, shaking her slightly.

“Huh?” she yawned.

“Something’s wrong,” he said, “Got a group coming our way. Looks like a Legion raiding party. It’s big even for us. If you want out I won’t blame you. But I’m going to stay. See if I can hold them off.”

“Wha-why’re they here?” she mumbled, still trying to wake up.

“Easy target for grabbing slaves,” he said, “Bunch of refugees, just a few soldiers defending it. I don’t think they’re here for us. Too bad. Would’ve made me feel good about myself.”

“You don’t sound surprised,” she said, she got up and stretched her arms out.

“I’m not,” he said, “Always figured this was how it was gonna end for me. Just didn’t know when. The day you showed up in Novac, I had a feeling I was supposed to go with you. That it was time to end all this. And now I know.”

“Well, saves us the trouble of findin’ those assholes,” she said.

Boone laughed, “If only it was easy all the time.”

“What are we waiting for?” she asked.

“I think this is exactly what I’ve been waiting for,” he said.

Jolene grabbed her gun and started shooting at the party of Legion. Boone covered her, taking down legionnaire after legionnaire. He didn’t let them get near Jolene, not even close. They hit the ground as they ran towards her. Jolene took down own her share of legionnaires, too. 

She held herself strong through three waves of the raiding party. Boone realized he was wrong to think they wouldn’t be able to hold the party off. The girl took on the whole Fort on her own and won, this was a skip in the park compared to that, to add on to that she had Boone’s help. To her, this was nothing. She was stronger than he let himself think.

When the last Legionnaire fell, Jolene stood still for a few moments. She looked around, hoping to find more attackers to slay. She turned to Boone.

“Huh,” he said, “We made it through after all. Not sure what to make of that.”

“I ain’t gonna let you die,” she said.

“I don’t mean disrespect,” he said, “It’s a hell of a thing having someone with your ability looking out for me. But I’ve come to believe that there are things nobody can stop. I thought for sure that’s what we’d finally come up against today. It would’ve made sense for things to end here. But now… I’m still waiting.”

“No one’s judging or punishing you,” Jolene said, “Things just happen.”

“If that’s how it is,” he shook his head, “There’s not a lot of comfort in knowing it. I don’t know what I’m supposed to do about all this.”

“You can’t take back what you’ve done, Boone,” she said, “But your regrets can set you on a better path.”

“I guess they brought us here,” he said, “One less Legion raiding party running loose now. Never a bad thing, you can take my word for that. Still feels like I’m living on borrowed time. But I don’t see any reason not to take a lot more of those sons of bitches with me. You got a point. There’s still some things I can do before all this is over.”

Jolene smiled, “Do you wanna head back to the ‘38 and grab a drink?”

“We can head back, but no drinks,” he said.

“What? Why?” she asked.

He shook his head, “You drink too much.”

He left it at that.

Jolene was angry, but couldn’t argue that it wasn’t true.


	17. Chapter 17

Jolene stopped by Camp McCarran on the way back from Bitter Springs. She didn’t bother going into the airport when she got there. She went to Boone’s old uniform and started talking to the snipers there. She first talked Corporal Betsy into getting medical treatment for her PTSD. Then, she flirted with a rookie with a bad stutter.

Boone hung back, but still gave into his bad habit of listening in to her private conversations.

“Y-You’re back,” the kid said, “Didn’t thi-think you’d want to talk to m-m-me again.”

“Why wouldn’t I?” she asked.

“Most people d-d-don’t like the st-stutter,” he said.

“So? Doesn’t mean it bothers me,” she told him, “Besides, you’re my type.”

Boone took a lap around the airfield. When he was done, she was gone. So he took another lap. He pushed everything down, bottling up everything he felt. Jolene caught up with him after he had stopped counting.

“Let’s go,” she said.

Boone followed her into the airport.

Her path was straight to Colonel Hsu’s office.

“Hi, Colonel,” she said, “Anything I can do to help around here?”

“Yeah, I can’t send a patrol on a bathroom break without it being ambushed by someone who heard they were coming,” he said, “So someone’s getting the word out.”

“I’ll look into it,” she said.

“Well, why not?” he said, “You’ve only ever been here once before so I can safely rule you out as the leak. I’d like to have absolute trust in my men, but that’s just not practical right now. Go ahead and look into it. See what you find. We don’t have much to go on right now. Lately every raiding party in New Vegas seems to have a map of our troop movements. It derails everything. Supplies, reinforcements. And it’ll only get worse, the longer we let it go on. Captain Curtis is heading up the investigation right now. He can fill you in.”

“Thank you,” she nodded.

Jolene found her way to Captain Curtis’s office.

“‘Scuse me, sir,” she said to get the Captain’s attention.

“Nice to meet you,” he said, “I’m Curtis.”

He shook her hand, “I’m the Courier. Colonel Hsu wants me to help you look into the recent intelligence leaks.”

“Smart man,” he said, “I can use somebody who can operate under the radar around here. Whoever our mole is, he’s been slippery. Whenever one of the MP’s gets too close, he changes his habits. Our last lead went cold weeks ago.”

“Where should I start?”

“You want my advice? Start by talking to people with a lot of eyes in the field,” he said, “People like Lieutenant Boyd, or Sergeant Contreras, maybe. Careful with Contreras, though. He’s not above suspicion himself. Keep me apprised of any leads you get. This guy’s gotten a lot of my men killed. I’m just itching to return the favor.”

“Thanks Captain,” she said, “Goodbye.”

“Later,” he nodded.

She walked upstairs to Lieutenant Boyd’s office.

“Hey Lieutenant Boyd,” Jolene walked into her office and sat on her desk like she owned the place.

“Good to see you again, Courier,” Boyd said, “Do you need anything?”

“Yeah, I’m lookin’ into intelligence leaks,” she nodded, “Seen anything suspicious lately?”

“Now what kind of MP would I be if I didn’t notice anything suspicious?” she asked, “I’ve had soldiers go AWOL, break-ins, thefts, you name it.”

“Tell me ‘bout the break-ins,” Jolene said.

“Maybe break-in isn’t the right word,” Boyd said, “We didn’t find signs of forced entry. But I’ve heard reports of someone sneaking into the control tower at night. It’s probably just a meeting spot for a steamy, military base, love affair. Kids today. But it bothers me that they didn’t break in. It means they have an access code. Most soldiers around the base don’t have that.”

Boone tuned out of the conversation and leaned against the doorway. He replayed the kiss in his head. It had been too good to be true. She was the best kisser in the Mojave and she just had to be drunk when she kissed him.

Of course she had wanted it at the time, he wondered how she felt now, sobered up. She had wanted him at the time, but she wouldn’t have even remembered anything if she didn’t remember the kiss - besides Boone had already done enough bad. He was glad he knew better. He stopped thinking about it, Jolene had walked over.

She left the room, Boone followed.

They left out of the back of airport and went to the control tower. She went through the access logs and turned to Boone.

“Somebody’s been gettin’ in at night,” she told Boone, “Boyd said there was a bunch of communication devices up there, I bet this person breakin’-in ain’t some people tryna get laid, I bet it’s the perp.”

Boone nodded.

“Alright,” he said, “Let’s stay and keep watch over the tower. We could catch him in action.”

“Okay,” she said.

They walked across the yard and took post behind a few boxes. Jolene sat down, Boone sat next to her and put his rifle across his lap.

“It’s eight now,” she said checking her PipBoy, “That gives us about five hours to kill.”

For the first hour, they sat silently. The second, they listened to the radio until Boone said they could give away their position. The third hour, Jolene started to talk.

“Boone,” she kept her voice low. Her accent, a big part in her strong charm that had vexed so many other NCR soldiers, made her words smooth. It was kind to the ear, slipping in like smooth butter. Jolene repeated herself, “Boone.”

“Yeah?”

“Do you ever take your beret off?”

“No,” he said simply. He hadn’t thought about it much. Even though he had long since parted from the 1st Recon, he still wore his beret. Manny still did, so he didn’t think it was such a strange thing to do, “Why?”

“Just wondering,” she said, “Just seems like people down here don’t have a lotta different clothes.”

“Was it different in Idaho?”

“Yeah, it was,” she said, “At least where I was from. People had a few different outfits. Maybe three or four. Just so things don't get dirty so fast.”

“You only have the one.”’

“Well, yeah, but I’ve been travelling far an’ wide,” she said, “Gotta keep my pockets open for food, supplies, and the packages I deliver.”

She took the beret off of Boone’s head.

“I’d really like my beret back, please,” he asked.

“Like your beret,” she said, “It’s pretty cool and you wear it day and night.”

“May I please have my beret back?”

“Yeah,” Jolene nodded, she handed the beret back to Boone.

He put it back on and made sure it was in the proper position.

Jolene was quiet for a little longer.

“What are you going to do when all of this blows over?” she asked.

“What do you mean?”

“After the battle,” she said, “After all of this, I’m going to go back to Idaho, take more low profile jobs, and drop off the caps I’ve made for my parents.”

“I haven’t thought about that,” he said. He really hadn’t even considered that this little thing they were doing was going to end.

“I’m sure you’ll figure it out,” she told him.

“Yeah, maybe I will,” he said, “maybe I won’t.”

Jolene shifted her attention elsewhere.

The fourth hour, Jolene started getting antsy. She pulled out a toy rocket ship and turned it over in her hands. Boone took it out of her hands around 12:30.

“Hey!” she protested, “I was looking at that.”

“We need to be watching the tower,” Boone said, “He could be here any minute now.”

Jolene put the toy back in her pocket and set her eyes back on the tower.

Boone watched as a soldier slowly made his way across the field and towards the tower. Jolene waited for the soldier to go into the tower before she moved.

She hurried over to the tower and quietly entered the building. She listened into the conversation and held her hand up. Boone was ready to strike.

“Yes, I’ve planted the bomb,” the perp said, “The monorail should leave at the end of the hour. Out.”

Jolene made her way up the stairs where she found none other than Captain Curtis.

“You don’t have clearance to be here,” he said.

“I have clearance to catch spies,” she retorted.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said. He was a lousy liar, Boone wondered how he hadn’t been caught earlier. “I can’t let you leave.”

He shot at Jolene before she could get her gun out. Boone grit his teeth and shot his gun until Curtis fell.

Jolene was gripping her leg and taking deep, shaky breaths.

“Are you okay?” Boone asked. He knelt down next to her and removed her hand. Blood had already soaked through her pants.

“Yeah, ‘m fine,” she grunted. She pulled her pants down and got out a doctor’s bag.

Her hands shook while she tied a tourniquet above the entry wound. She got a pair of tweezers out to pull out the bullet, her hands weren’t steady.

“I can’t do it,” she said, “I need you to.”

“I don’t know anything about medical care,” he said.

“I’ll talk you through it,” she said. She handed him the tweezers, “Use these to take the bullet out.

Boone set his rifle aside and took the tweezers. He set his hand on her thigh, below her wound and carefully took the bullet out.

“What now?”

She pulled out a translucent bottle, “Pour this on it, slowly.”

Boone did as he was told. Jolene winced and closed her eyes. She grabbed a wipe and gave it to him.

“Wipe it off,” she said. Boone put the bottle down and started wiping her leg off. She hissed and shoved Boone. “Don’t touch the entry point.”

“Sorry, I’m sorry,” he said. He continued to wipe her leg off, carefully.

She rifled through the doctor’s bag and started sobbing.

“There’s no needle,” she cried, “There’s no needle!”

Boone acted quickly, remembering a few bits and pieces on how to help a fellow soldier in shock. He took her hands and squeezed them.

“Jolene, it’s okay,” he said, “There’s a doctor on base, I can wake him up to take care of you.”

“But the monorail,” she said, “It’s rigged to blow up.”

“I’ll take care of it,” he promised, “Here, pull your pants back up and I’ll carry you back, okay?”

“Okay,” she nodded. He wiped the tears off of her cheeks, “Boone?”

“Yeah?”

“Check to see if he has a code for the bomb,” she said.

He pat down the still warm corpse of Captain Curtis. He found a slip of paper labelled, “activation code”. Boone pocketed it, strapped his rifle to his back, and helped Jolene up off the ground. He picked her up and slowly walked down the stairs.

He walked across the field and into the airport. He dropped her off at the medbay and found the doctor asleep nearby.

“Excuse me, doctor,” he said, waking the doctor up.

“What the hell do you want?” the doctor asked.

“The Courier was just shot on base,” he said, “She needs to be patched up immediately.”

The doctor got up and went to the medbay.

Boone parted from them and went to the monorail.

“The monorail will depart shortly,” the prerecorded announcer said.

He boarded the monorail and found the bomb in a vent to the left of the entrance. He removed the vent cover and pulled out the deactivation code. He had seen Jolene deactivate her fair share of landmines and tripwires, but she’d never shown him how. He looked at the code, then back at the bomb for a moment. There was a keypad on the bomb.

Only one way to find out. He punched the code in, the red light blinked, then deactivated. Boone sighed and disposed of the bomb. He got off the monorail just in time for it to leave.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise I haven't forgotten about this, I got really busy with school, work, and college-prep stuff. Spring break is next week so I'll get the rest of this out soon! :)


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! This chapter is the one with sex in it!

In the morning, Jolene woke from her drug-induced sleep in the medbay. She found Boone sleeping in a chair nearby and sat next to him until he woke up. It wasn’t long after she sat next to him.

“How are you feeling?” he asked.

“A lot better,” Jolene said, “The doctor gave me Med-X last night and I also bought some Stimpacks off of him so I don’t have to worry about an incomplete doctor’s bag again… Sorry I freaked out last night.”

“There’s nothing to apologize for,” Boone said, “You were in shock, you’d just been shot.”

“Yeah, well last time I got shot I wasn’t awake to see the immediate aftermath,” she joked. She laughed to herself before continuing, “Anyway, we gotta tell Colonel Hsu what happened and then we can go hang out at the Lucky 38 for a day or two. I need like a rest or somethin’.”

“Then, let’s go,” she nodded.

The pair left the medbay, reported Jolene’s findings to Colonel Hsu, and left for the Strip. Jolene didn’t make any stops between the monorail station and the ‘38. She was silent during the elevator ride up, the radio on her Pip-Boy was playing but she had set it at a low volume, and as usual, Boone kept quiet.

Jolene went to her room and shut the door behind herself, so Boone went to his room and unloaded. He propped his rifle up against the wall and put the stuff Jolene asked him to keep track of on the desk. Boone heard a radio turn on across the suite, Jolene must have gone to the rec room.

He left his room and went to where Jolene was. She watched him cross the room then sit down next to her. Boone stared ahead and tried to keep from thinking too much about her. The way her hair fell so carefully styled. The way her skin was as soft as it looked. The way her lips felt against his. He wasn’t doing a very good job.

“Boone?” she asked after a moment.

“Yeah?”

“How do you feel about Manny Vargas?” she asked.

“He was a good spotter.”

“Weren’t you also friends?” she cocked her head to the side.

“Yeah,” he said, “We were.”

“Not anymore?”

“No,” Boone shook his head, “When Carla went missing, he was the first person I told. He tried to hide it, but I could tell he was glad she was gone.”

Jolene didn’t talk for a while after that, she sat and listened to the radio. However, Boone didn’t want to end the conversation. So, very unlike himself, he kept talking.

“Is it different in Idaho than it is here?”

“Oh, yeah,” Jolene nodded, “A little, I guess. Not much of Idaho was hit when the bombs dropped. There was a pre-war ghoul that lived in the settlement I grew up in, she used to tell me about life before the war, not much has changed. There was more grass, lots more. There were some Brahim, big herd of them South of town. Huh, my mama used to think I was gonna marry that rancher’s son. Think I might’ve if my daddy didn’t go and get himself shot. Didn’t have any big politics, just local democracies. Nothing like the NCR, just a couple of men and women would take up arms to defend from raiders and super mutants.”

Jolene sighed.

“I gotta go back after all this blows over,” she said, “Gotta give all my caps to mama and daddy,” she paused, “Where did you grow up?”

“Grew up in California,” Boone told her, “Along the coast, my mother raised me alone. My father was also in the NCR, but he died in combat a few years after I was born. I signed on to the military when I was 18 because I didn’t know how to do anything else. You know the rest.”

Jolene didn’t say anything, instead, she trapped Boone in her gaze. He stared into her blue eyes, it was a shade of blue he hadn’t seen before. Nothing had such vivid color in the Mojave.

She laughed.

“What’s so funny?” he asked.

“The way you look at me,” she answered simply. Jolene didn’t look away.

“What’s funny about it?”

“Nothing,” she said, “I’ve seen you look at me like that before, didn’t really notice until now.”

“Wha-”

“Same way that James looks at me,” she said, “and O'Hanrahan, and Ten of Spades.”

Boone wanted to look away, but he didn’t. She’d caught him and he wasn’t sure if he wanted to save himself. He didn’t say anything, only looked at Jolene.

She scooted closer to Boone and put her hand on his arm. Her hands were smooth but had growing calluses from her now-frequent gun usage. She was close to him, closer than he’d let anyone get to him in a long time. And Boone liked it. He liked feeling her hands on him. He liked being able to look at her for such a long time. He liked how she made him feel at ease, even when he felt like his head was spinning a hundred miles an hour.

She didn’t seem nervous. Why didn’t she look nervous? Maybe because she was used to it. After all, she had charmed three other NCR soldiers without breaking a sweat.

“Boone,” she said softly. She had leaned in closer.

Boone was sitting up, now as well. He could feel her breath on his lips and it didn’t smell like whiskey. He could do this in good conscience. He put his hand on her cheek and pressed his lips against hers. This kiss was different than the last. She knew what was happening. She knew what she was doing. He knew she actually wanted this. He ran his hand up her non-wounded thigh and leaned in closer to her. Jolene held onto the back of his shoulders.

The kiss itself was slow. He took his time taking in how her lips moved against his. She sucked on his bottom lip - only for a moment, but long enough for Boone to feel it. He let out a small breath. He moved his hand from her cheek to the back of her head, carefully running his fingers through her hair. He wasn’t sure whether or not her hair was sensitive - Carla’s was.

Why did he have to think of her? Now? He’d wanted this for so long, why was he thinking of Carla? Why was he like this? Why did he have to ruin every good thing that happened to him? First, he kissed her when she was drunk. Now he’s kissing her while she’s sober, but thinking about his dead wife.

He pulled away and looked at Jolene hoping to move on from this momentary lapse. Jolene kept her hands on him while he stared, her lips kept parted for when he decided to kiss her again.

This woma- this girl in front of him. She was barely twenty, Jolene years younger than him. Five years younger than Carla was when she died. Yet, she was so much different than Carla. Jolene could fight, she had the stomach to kill. She knew about Boone’s past, helped him through it. She knew more about Boone than Carla ever did.

“Boone?” she asked, “Are you-”

He cut her off and kissed her again. He knew what he was doing. He wasn’t completely moved on from Carla, but he knew he liked Jolene and if he didn’t do something about it now, he wouldn’t ever get a chance to do anything about it again. She was leaving for Idaho in a few months - maybe weeks depending on how much she keeps aided the NCR.

It was selfish, but he hoped maybe if she knew how he felt, she might stay.

He kissed her desperately, trying to keep her as close as possible. His fingers dug into her scalp, and in a bold attempt to let her know how he felt, he pulled her into his lap. Jolene didn’t seem to care, but she did pull away for a moment to take his shades and beret off. He tossed them behind him and pushed his hand up from her thigh to her back.

Boone’s stomach was in knots. He was so worried he would mess this up, even though he had Jolene in his lap kissing him back.

She took her hands off of Boone and started undoing her coat. He grabbed her hands and took over undressing her. She shrugged off the coat and let it fall off the couch. She shivered, now in her grey tank top. Nothing covered her arms and kept her warm. Boone ran his hands down her arms, feeling her bare skin. She didn’t have many scars - maybe it was because of her coat - but there were a few. He stopped when he felt a rough patch of skin on her forearm.

He pulled away for a moment and glanced down. It was a burn scar.

“Checkin’ out my battle wounds?” she teased, “Learned to respect the campfire’s personal space the hard way when I was ‘bout… hmm, nine maybe?”

Boone gave a small laugh, “Any more you’d like to show me?”

Jolene’s lips twitched into a smirk, “Wanna find ‘em?”

Boone grabbed the hem of her tank top and slowly pushed it up her torso. He stopped midway, at the base of her ribs. A long, deep scar spanned from her hip bone to her ribs.

“What was this?”

“You won’t believe me,” she said, “I was eighteen, runnin’ a package to Nebraska and got mistaken for a warlord’s runaway bride. So, the gang took me in and tortured me, dug this knife into me and tried to get information out of me about what I did with the money and the chems. Every day for a week, they’d move the knife further and further down, till the actual warlord himself got back from some big trade and came to see his bride. He figured out pretty quickly I wasn’t his fiancee and let me go with a pocket full of caps and some complimentary chems as an apology.”

“There’s no way,” he shook his head.

She laughed, “No, just had an incident with a bull on my sixteenth birthday. Didn’t hear the rancher’s son warn me that I was in the bull’s field till I was knocked on my back thinkin’ my stomach had been ripped out.”

Jolene closed her eyes. She felt Boone’s fingertips running up her scar. He pushed her tank top up further. She lifted her arms up to let Boone slide it off. She was now down two articles of clothing, as she still wasn’t completely bare. She still had on her long pants, her heavy lace-up boots, and her bra.

He went for her pants. Jolene had other ideas. She put her hands over his and stopped him.

“Don’t I get to have some fun too?” she asked. She pulled his shirt up, Boone pulled it over his head. She found that he was one of the very few in the wastelands to be free of scars - a privilege of long-range fighting.

He met her with another kiss, and another, and another, and another. Boone held her tightly against him, leaving her just enough room to breathe. He didn’t want it to stop, he didn’t want Jolene to pull away from him. He had waited for this, he wanted it to last as long as he could make it. Boone dug his nails into her shoulder, Jolene moaned into his mouth. She pushed her hips against his. Boone wasn’t embarrassed when he knew she felt his hard-on. Instead, he ran one hand down her back and gripped her hip. He rolled his hips against her.

Jolene leaned down, pulling Boone with her. He took his hand off her back and used it to keep his weight off of her. Boone deepened the kiss. He ran his tongue on her bottom lip. Jolene parted her lips and let him explore her mouth. He used his free hand to unbutton her pants and slip his hand into her pants. Jolene pushed her hips up against his hand and let out another small moan.

“Boone,” she muttered against his lips.

He pushed his finger in her, slowly pumping in and out. Jolene squirmed under him, reacting at every small touch as if she hadn’t been laid in years. As far as Boone knew, that wasn’t the case. It had only been a few days - at most a week. Maybe she was just giving Boone an act. Either way, he liked it.

He slipped another finger into her and pumped faster. He rubbed his thumb in a circle, giving her the friction she needed. Jolene dug her fingers into his shoulders and moaned again.

“Boone please,” she said shakily, “Please, I need you.”

Boone could’ve gotten off to those very words right then and there, but he wouldn’t let himself ruin this moment.

He drew his hand from her pants and worked them down, careful around her fresh wound. He leaned down and kissed her panty line.

“No,” she muttered, “Not that. I want your cock.”

Boone looked up to her, “Are you sure? I don’t want to get you pregnant.”

“Please,” she begged.

Boone didn’t take much convincing. He pulled his pants off and got rid of the rest of the clothes off of both of them. He bit his lip as he pushed in and kept his eyes on her. Jolene let out a small whimper and closed her eyes. She hooked her leg around his waist and let her mouth hang open.

She was quiet, only letting out small mewls, moans, and whimpers while Boone pounded away at her. Boone was more vocal than her. He grunted from gritted teeth and let out curses.

“Damn, Jolene,” he moaned.

He thrust slower, trying to draw it out.

She arched her back.

“Yes, yes, yes,” she mumbled just loud enough for Boone to hear, “I’m - I’m-”

She let out a moan. She gripped his shoulders and drug her nails down his back. Boone felt her release on him. He was able to give her a few more strong thrusts before he pulled out and came on her stomach. His face contorted with pleasure, he moaned loudly.

He pulled out, wiped her stomach off with his shirt, then flipped her over so she was on top. He held her, loosely enough to give her the option to walk away. But she stayed.

He wasn’t sure what to say now. Did he ask where they stood with each other now or later?

For now, he kept quiet, letting her stay in his arms without any obligations. The longer he didn’t talk, the longer this moment would last and the longer he would be able to enjoy the connection they were sharing.


	19. Chapter 19

Boone woke covered with a blanket. His clothes were folded neatly on the floor next to him. His beret and glasses were on the table next to a note. He sat up - making sure the blanket still covered him.

Boone grabbed the note and looked over it.

‘Boone, went to talk to Crocker at the embassy,’ it read, ‘be back soon. You were passed out, must need sleep. Jolene.’

That part had been crossed out, however. At the bottom of the page, Jolene had drawn an arrow to the other side of the scrap of paper.

He turned the paper over.

‘I came back and you were still sleeping,’ she wrote, ‘going to the cocktail lounge to give you some peace. Meet me up there when you wake up. Jolene.’

Boone dressed. He had a new shirt, clean and without the little holes his old one had at the collar. Jolene must have found it in the casino.

He went up a floor.

To his surprise, she wasn’t drinking. Instead, she leaned against the window and looked upon the Strip. He stopped and watched her. He kept his distance, hoping she wouldn’t notice him.

He knew she would want to talk about where they stood with each other - so did her. But he also didn’t want to. He didn’t want to know that his second chance at being happy again was gone. He would rather be left in the dark than know for sure. He would rather her leave the Mojave and never talk to him again than know she didn’t reciprocate the feelings he had for her.

“Boone,” she said without turning from the window, “You ever seen such a sight?”

His mouth was dry, he opened his mouth to speak but couldn’t find the words.

God, how was she doing this? Why couldn’t he just answer her question?

He walked over to her side and leaned over the angled windows. She and Boone shared the sight of the Strip no one had seen before.

Jolene turned her head and looked at Boone. He closed his eyes. His heart raced. He balled up his fists. He was ready for her to break his heart. Not truly ready, he never would be ready. But he braced himself for the emotional disrepair he would have.

He already planned out what he was going to do after he left the Lucky 38 when he was done with this conversation. He would walk to the embassy, re-enlist, and hopefully be stationed somewhere far from Vegas.

The conversation didn’t come. Instead, Jolene put her hand loosely on his wrist, above his fist. He relaxed enough to let her slide her fingers through his.

Yes, this is what he wanted. He opened his eyes and calmed down. He stayed silent. He didn’t want to initiate a conversation. Just like last night, he wanted to enjoy the moment.

“Ain’t nobody ever seen this before, not like this,” she said softly, “Jus’ you an’ me. Feel small when I’m down there… but when I’m up here… feels like I’m big.”

She walked to the other side of the lounge, toting Boone along behind her - still holding his hand. Now, they looked at the Mojave.

“There’s the dinosaur I met you in,” she said, pointing at a small green figure, “Least I think so, haven’t seen anything else so green yet.”

She took a breath and gazed along the horizon.

“You can’t see it,” she muttered.

“I can see the dinosaur,” Boone said.

“‘s not what I’m talking ‘bout now,” she said, “Talkin’ about Goodsprings.”

Boone hadn’t heard of Goodsprings before, if he had he didn’t remember.

“What’s there?”

“It’s… where I got shot,” she said.

Boone looked to her. He looked at the two bullet wounds on her forehead.

“That’s over and done with,” Boone said, “Benny is dead. He paid for what he did.”

She sighed, “I jus’ wish he couldn’t have fought back. I-I- He tied me up and killed me. Didn’t give me no chance. He had a chance, even if it was slim. He didn’t beg for his life like I did.”

Boone tightened the grip on her hand - not to hurt her, but to give her stability of some sort. Jolene huffed and squeezed his hand back.

“I wish it didn’t happen in the first place,” she huffed, “But, I guess if it didn’t, I wouldn’t have met you.”

Damn it. He knew it. Boone should have kept his mouth shut in the first place. Now they had to talk about feelings and where they stood with each other. It wasn’t a bad thing, it could be, but it didn’t have to be.

“I never thought…” Jolene stopped and glanced down at the floor, “I never thought I’d have someone lookin’ out for me. You ain’t got a reason to keep followin’ me around, but you do anyway. Why?”

“You know why,” he said. Did she, though? She had told him she saw how he looked at her, did she mean it or was it just a line?

“But I want to make sure I do know why,” she turned to him, “It could only mean two things.”

Boone looked down at her. How should he put it?

Jolene watched him nervously. He could feel her palms sweating slightly. She bounced her gaze all over his face, as if hoping for some sort of reaction.

“I don’t want to see you hurt,” he finally said, “I don’t have anyone but you. I’m not sure what I would do if I wasn’t looking after you. I wouldn’t know what to do with myself if I lost you too.”

Boone’s confession earned a smile from Jolene.

“I don’t know what I’d be doin’ without you,” she told him. He ran his thumb over the back of her hand, hoping for her to continue and maybe not break his heart. “Probably struggling with my gun.”

“You still do that,” Boone said playfully.

She shot him a glare, but smiled and bit her lip. She must have done that on purpose. Boone stared at her lips as she ran her tongue over them.

“We need to go to the Dam,” she said, “Gotta see if Colonel Moore’s got any errands needin’ run.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know y'all don't read the end notes, but I make them anyways lol. So, I cut my finger open at work a few days ago but it still hurts and it looks real ugly but maybe I'll get a cool scar lol. Anyways, spring break lowkey sucked because I didn't get to do much of what I wanted, I just did chores and wrote scholarship essays and wanted to die, but I finally got my stuff together for the most part :)


	20. Chapter 20

Boone had been to the Hoover Dam before. Four years prior he had fought in the first battle for it against the Legion. He and the First Recon had been placed on the ridge above the Dam and ordered to kill as many Legion as possible. A bird’s eye view was all he got to see of the Dam, then. It was all he got to see of a lot of places. Jolene was more up close and personal than he was, so in the recent weeks, he had seen a lot more sites up close in the Mojave than he had while touring.

Entering the Dam’s pre-war visitor center, Boone was disappointed it wasn’t as nice as he expected. But a lot of things weren’t as nice in the Mojave. He would just have to deal with it, just like everything else.

Jolene stopped an officer.

“Excuse me, I’m lookin’ for Colonel Moore,” she said, “Do you know where I’d find her?”

“Take the elevator down,” the officer said, “Take the door on your right, then go through the doors that have guards.”

“Thank you,” Jolene nodded.

She took the elevator down, took a right through the door, then went through the doors with guards.

Colonel Moore was pacing around her office, almost aimlessly. Boone knew she was probably just stressed.

“Colonel Moore?” Jolene asked, “I’m Evelyn, the Courier you sent for.”

“Good, you’ve made it,” she said, “I’ve been receiving reports about the savior of the NCR for a while now and wanted to meet you myself. You’ve proven yourself especially capable, and right now I can use all the capable people I can get. Crocker gets handed the fluff missions that no one else wants to do. When people need something really important done, they come to me. Usually, I dispatch one or more rangers to see these things through, but I’m a little short-handed at the moment. Think you’re up for a real mission?”

“Yes ma’am,” Jolene nodded.

“Since the majority of my men are on assignments dealing with the Legion,” she said, “I need someone to handle other matters that have arisen. Make no mistake, there’s a battle coming and I intend to make sure that are no loose ends when the time comes. One such loose end is a gang known as the Great Khans. Have you heard of them?”

“You could say we’ve had dealings,” she nodded.

“Then I don’t need to tell you that they can be a pain in the ass,” Colonel Moore said, “The NCR had a rather sordid history with them and I’m concerned that we’ll find them aiding our enemies when the Legion attack comes. That is unless we get to them first. I want you to visit them in their canyons to the far west and make sure they’re in no shape to join the Legion. They’re just another gang of Raiders as far as I’m concerned. So deal with them appropriately. Any questions?”

“No, ma’am.”

“Good,” Colonel Moore nodded, “I look forward to hearing of your progress. Dismissed.”

Jolene left the Dam. Even after Colonel Moore stressed that this was important, she still kept at her moseying pace. She had stopped him after they left the Dam and asked him to keep it close. He had no objections, so he walked alongside her, gun in hand.

“It looks like we’ll make it by sundown,” she told him after checking her map.

There wasn’t much else talked about until Jolene spotted Legionnaires.

“Incoming,” she muttered. She pulled her gun and in the time it took her to hit one, Boone had hit the rest.

She smiled, “I got one.”

“Let me aim that for you next time,” he said, “You’ll get more.”

She glanced at him and put the gun on her back.

“I was trained as a spotter,” Boone said, “Trust me.”

“I do,” she nodded. She smiled and kept her gaze on him for a moment longer, then got back to walking.

Boone’s heart swelled and he didn’t know why. He smiled too, even though she couldn’t see.

Later, they came to the mouth of a canyon. The sun was setting. It was cooling down.

“Jolene, how’s your leg?” Boone asked.

“‘It hurts,” she said, “But it’s fine.”

“Have you checked it recently?”

“Yeah, I checked it when I woke up this morning,” she said, “I look good - for a gunshot wound. Ready?”

Boone nodded.

They entered the canyon side by side. Jolene walked closer to Boone as a few insults were lobbed their way.

“Did you know you’re traveling with a fucking murder?”

“Hey, you better keep an eye on your pal, I don’t take no goddamn chances with the NCR.”

Others didn’t say much, instead choosing to glare and send nasty looks their way.

Jolene looked around at the tents, looking for maybe the biggest one? Something different. Something that showed off the power of the leader.

A house. A house that overlooked the rest of the small canyon.

“That must be it,” Jolene said. It wasn’t to Boone. Or maybe it was. Either way, he didn’t feel the need to respond to her observation.

Jolene made her way towards the house, walking confidently as she was.

Not even pausing to knock, she walked in.

Not many turned to pay attention who had walked in. Those who did shot Boone a dirty glare and turned back to their meal. They seemed to be eating well. They had large chunks of meat on their plates. They ate messily, letting juice drip from their chins back onto their plates. Despite their sloppy behavior, his stomach grumbled. How long had it been since he had eaten so well? Sure, he’d been eating rations Jolene had picked up and the meat she grilled before they made it to The Strip, but it wasn’t the same as this meat. This was slow-cooked tender, juicy meat.

He almost wanted to sit down at the empty chair at the end of the table and eat with them. That wouldn’t happen though. They had made it clear he wasn’t welcomed here. If it weren’t for Jolene, the Courier who has everyone - even him- wrapped around her finger, he wouldn’t have been allowed to even walk into the canyon in the first place.

He would have to wait to eat.

While Boone was distracted watching the Khans eat, Jolene had talked to the men at the table perpendicular to the table he had placed his attention on. The three men must have been important. The man in the middle was the largest and wore a helmet seemingly signifying him as the leader.

Jolene left the table and brushed her hand against Boone’s wrist as she walked by him. He took it as a cue to leave with her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yeehaw I'm writing the last 2 or 3 chapters right now and I feel awesome


	21. Chapter 21

Boone sat on the couch next to Jolene while she gave a report to Colonel Moore about what was going on with the Great Khans. From what he gathered, the leader doesn’t want anything to do with the NCR, but the second in command can swallow working with them. So, Jolene’s new orders were to assassinate the leader and recruit the second in command to work with the NCR. He didn’t like the sound of that. Jolene did more than her fair share in dirty work, but he had never known her to assassinate anyone.

Other than Caesar.

And Benny.

Benny was different, though, he had killed her and buried her in a shallow grave. But, then again, she did plot with his second-in-command to kill him. So how was this any different? Was it? The Chairmen were tribals… ex-tribals? The Great Khans were tribals too. He didn’t object when Jolene killed Benny. Was it just because he’d hurt her?

Honestly, Boone wouldn’t mind killing anyone in cold blood if they had hurt Jolene. He already had once before. But that man was Legion. Either way, who was he to judge who Jolene killed? He’s killed more people than she’s ever interacted with.

“Boone, let’s go,” she said.

He left the office with her.

Boone cleared his mind of the issue and kept his eyes on their surroundings.

The sun rose halfway there, it wasn’t until then that Boone realized he hadn’t slept in almost twenty-four hours. It wouldn’t kill him, being in the field as long as he had been, he was used to getting an odd amount of sleep.

Jolene wasn’t a soldier, though. She’s a courier. She’s probably more used to getting sleep. He could tell it was taking a toll on her. Her left eye was twitching slightly and she was walking slumped forward a little more than usual.

“We should stop soon and rest,” Boone said.

“Okay,” she nodded, stifling a yawn.

She stopped and looked at the map on her PipBoy.

“There’s a Ranger Safehouse nearby,” she said.

She turned and walked straight for the safehouse. He wondered how she knew this. He didn’t even know that there were Ranger safehouses. Sure, he had an idea that something like that might have existed, but he had no clue that they were a real thing. It must be a close secret. Jolene was basically an unofficial NCR Ranger at this point. He was pretty sure she was paid better than Rangers. She always split her pay with Boone and she was receiving some pretty hefty payments for doing their dirty work.

Once inside the safehouse, Boone let his guard down. He set his rifle down next to the bed Jolene was getting comfortable on. She unlaced her boots and pushed them under the bed. Next, she started taking her coat off.

“Are you going to sleep with me?” she asked. Her voice was soft, it spilled out of her mouth like warm honey. Not that Boone had ever had the luxury of having honey. He didn’t mind, he had Jolene. Jolene was better than honey… he imagined.

He nodded wordlessly. He sat next to her and took his boots off. He put his shades and beret in the footlocker with Jolene’s coat.

Jolene stretched and laid down, her back to Boone. He looked over her for a moment. Her tank top clung to her at her chest but wrinkled up at her waist. Her bra strap hung loose, draped over her shoulder. She turned her head and looked back at him.

He averted his gaze downward. He should really go to sleep. Boone laid down and put his arm over her, pressing his chest against her back. He ran his hand over hers, her fingers twitched under his. They spread. Boone closed his fingers around his hand, Jolene followed suit.

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

He felt like his mind was racing, even though he was only thinking about living in the moment. He just wanted to lay here and enjoy having Jolene in his arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so my general manager got demoted because he threatened me and grabbed my hair and like now everyone's leaving because of it and like ://


	22. Chapter 22

Boone woke up with Jolene’s legs awkwardly propped over his, effectively trapping him until she would wake up ten minutes later. He didn’t mind, though. He got to hold her, spend time enjoying the warmth she shared with him. He kept himself awake, even when he wanted to go back to sleep. He was going to appreciate the time he had with her, there was no way he would take her for granted.

He almost thought about how she wanted to leave the Mojave as soon as she could. Short thoughts about how she would be out of his life as soon as she had come in. He pushed those thoughts away and focused on the moment. Listening to her breathe, feeling her bare skin between her shirt and pants, and resting his face on her neck.

She shifted on her back when she woke and looked over to Boone.

“Good morning,” she mumbled.

“It’s night,” Boone said.

“Good night, smart ass,” she rolled her eyes. She moved her legs off of him and sat up. She stretched, yawned, and looked down at Boone, “Did you sleep okay?”

“Slept good,” he nodded. He ran his hand over her leg, “How is it?”

“Feels a little sore,” she said, “Gonna take some Med-X for breakfast.”

“You need to eat something with that.”

She only hummed as she dressed.

“I saw some food in the next room over,” he said.

Jolene stood from the bed and walked out of the room. Boone got out of bed and followed. They sat together at a small table in the dining room. She sipped coffee and picked at a premade meal. Boone ate the same meal, used to the flavorless mix the NCR rationed to its soldiers. It was nice to know that Rangers got the same quality meals as the other soldiers, he didn’t know why.

When she finished, Jolene injected herself with Med-X and nodded.

“I’m ready to go."

Jolene stayed close to Boone as they made their way to Red Rock Canyon. It was dark out, Boone was used to working in the dark. He and Manny tended to work nights when they were teamed up during their tour. They had a bet going to see how long Boone could shoot with sunglasses during night missions. Needless to say, the habit stuck.

Further on down the road, Jolene brushed her hand against his. Boone glanced down, her hand was partly open and still very close to his. He grabbed her hand and smiled. He ran his thumb over the back of her hand.

Jolene stopped short at the mouth of the canyon.

“Gimme that,” she said. She pointed to his beret.

“No,” he said flatly.

“Look, I’m aboutta assassinate their leader,” she said, “If anyone spots you the night before he turns up dead they’re gonna know it was the NCR’s doing.”

He took his beret off and tucked it into his back pocket. She nodded and continued. They kept to the side of the canyon, away from any of the last few Khans staying up this late. The few that were up had gathered around a campfire, looked as if they were drinking and shooting up. They wouldn’t notice the two sneaking into Papa Khan’s house.

Jolene knelt by the back door. She pulled out a lockpicking kit Colonel Moore had given her for the mission. Boone watched her back while she worked on the lock. The door clicked, she slowly opened it and pulled her knife out.

Lucky enough, Papa Khan was asleep. Jolene got the job done quickly. She dug her knife into his neck and pulled it across. There wasn’t much left of his neck when she was done. She put her knife back and wiped her hands off on the sheets.

“Let’s go,” she whispered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just finished writing this completely, epilogue and everything and let me tell you I feel great!!!


	23. Chapter 23

Boone sat at the bar in the cocktail lounge. They had spent the day walking across the desert to report back to Colonel Moore. Jolene was practicing her bartending skill behind the bar, testing her drinks on herself and Boone. She only sipped on hers before moving on to the next drink. Boone would drink half, then start on the next drink she put in front of him.

At sundown, Jolene hopped over the counter.

“I’m gonna go do some investigatin' at Gomorrah,” she said, “Why don’t you stay here an’ relax for a lil’ bit?”

Boone nodded.

Jolene turned to leave but stopped. She turned back around and kissed his cheek before going. He smiled.

“I’ll see you later,” he said. She walked out of the lounge.

Boone got up from the bar and leaned against the window. He watched the sign lights flicker below. He could barely make out the people stumbling below. After he had enough of looking around, he returned to the bar and finished the drinks they left behind.

Slowly, but surely, he got through them.

He got up from the bar again, an hour or two later, and fell flat on his face. He took a moment to collect himself before getting up. The room spun around him while he stumbled to the elevator.

The doors opened, he walked in and leaned against the wall. What button was it? Jolene always knew. 

He reached out to press the one he thought was right.

The doors closed. Boone went down a few floors and stumbled out.

He made his way down the hall and opened the door to what he thought was Jolene’s room. The room was set up wrong. The bed was to the right of the door, there was no desk, his rifle wasn’t propped against his wardrobe. There was a door open to a bathroom.

This wasn’t the right floor.

_ Oh shit. _

Boone rushed to that bathroom and puked. He held the edge of the toilet and caught his breath. He got up and carefully walked out of the bathroom.

The room was spinning again. He held himself up on the doorway and waited for it to stand still. 

He made his way back to the elevator and pressed another button.

He ended up back at the Lounge.

Boone huffed in frustration and pressed a new button.

Another wrong floor.

He just wanted to lay down.

He pressed another button and another until he made it to the right floor.

Boone walked to his room and passed out on the floor.

-

“Boone? Boone?”

Boone opened his eyes and squinted, “Jolene.”

Jolene was leaning over Boone, “Are you okay?”

He looked at the bullet wounds on her forehead. He leaned up and ran his finger over them.

“I’m gonna… kill the guy who did this to you,” he growled.

Jolene laughed, “Okay. So you’re still drunk, huh?”

“He won’t see what’s coming for him,” he continued.

“Let’s get you up,” Jolene said. She helped Boone to his feet and to the bed.

He fell face first. Jolene knelt down and took off his boots. She nudged Boone over and took his sunglasses and beret off.

“No,” he whined. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her hand back. “That’s my beret.”

“You don’t sleep in it, sweetheart,” she said, “You’ll mess it up.”

“O-Okay,” he nodded. He released her hand and let her take his beret.

He lay on his back and looked at the ceiling. Jolene grabbed his legs and pulled them onto the bed.

“Jolene,” he whispered.

“Huh?”

“Jolene,” he repeated, quieter.

She leaned close to Boone.

“What?”

“Jolene,” he said again. He wasn’t sure what he was going to say or if he had anything to say at all.

“Yes, Boone?”

He pulled her down on top of him and wrapped his arms around her.

“Wait, I have ash all over my boots,” she wriggled out of his arms and took her boots off.

She got back in bed. Boone turned over and gazed at her.

“I was only gone for a few hours, I can’t believe you managed to get this drunk,” she laughed.

“You told me to relax, babyyy,” he said.

She shook her head. Boone ran his thumb over her forehead again.

“I’m going to kill him,” he said.

Jolene half smiled, “I ‘preciate it, Boone.”

-

He woke up a few hours later in bed. Jolene was in the bedroom fiddling with something on the desk. Her radio was on at a low volume, it still drilled a hole in his ears.

“Can you turn that off, please?” he asked.

Jolene looked over and nodded. She turned her radio off.

“How are you feeling?”

“Like shit,” he said.

She laughed, “I saw all my drinks were empty when I came home.”

She looked back down at what she was working on. Boone couldn’t see what it was since her giant coat was bundled up between him and her.

“I got you some water and a hangover pill from the Followers,” she said.

Boone sat up and took the pill. He sipped on the water and leaned on the headboard. His hangover didn’t go away immediately, it would still take a few hours. Jolene worked on whatever it was she was doing for a while.

“I got quite a bit done while you were asleep,” she said. She kept her voice almost at a whisper, it was a melody to Boone like it always was.

“Like what?”

“I caught the Omertas at Gomorrah collaborating with the Legion,” she said, “And I got rid of Mr. House.”

“You did all of that?”

“Yeah, you’ve been out for a while,” she nodded, “I even reported back to Colonel Moore twice. I’ve got the next assignment when you’re feeling better.’

Boone nodded, “Give me an hour.”


	24. Chapter 24

Jolene led Boone south of Vegas, she glanced down at her map every so often. She had turned her radio on. She hummed along to the tunes. Boone had heard them so often, he thinks he could probably name them if he tried. Maybe. 

“Boone, did you ever have any run-ins with the Brotherhood of Steel?” she asked.

“No, I never had any,” he said, “I heard about how we ran them out of Helios One. They disappeared, but sometimes I hear that people see some of their Knights out sometimes.”

“Colonel Moore said some scouts went missin’ west of Helios One,” Jolene said, “I traveled a lot in the area west of Helios One before I met up with you.”

She looked back down at her map and showed Boone a selected location.

“One day, I came across this weird fenced in area, just west of Helios One,” she said, “There were some bunkers and I just had this strange feeling like I wasn’t alone. I feel like the Brotherhood might be there.”

Boone nodded, “What’s the plan when we get there?”

“I’m going to blow up the reactor,”’ she said, “Then high tail it outta there.”

Boone nodded again. It wasn’t her best plan, but it wasn’t her worst plan she’s had. At least this time she’s not going at it alone. At least he can be there if something goes wrong.

Jolene stopped at the fence.

“There are four bunkers,” she told him, “It’s easy to get lost and I’ve heard this place has bad sandstorms at night, so I don’t wanna stick around for too long.”

“Yeah, me neither,” he said.

The two of them walked into the valley and checked out a few of the bunkers. The first two were collapsed, but the third lead them to a new room. There were two barricades on either side of the door. This had to be the place. Jolene opened the door and walked in. He followed her down the stairs, keeping close. 

A heavily-armored knight stopped them. 

“Where the hell do you think you’re going?” he asked.

“I was just scavenging,” she said, pulling answers out of her ass, “I didn’t realize anyone would be in here. I could just… go.”

“No, Elder McNamara is going to want to meet with you,” he shook his head, “Will you go in peace?”

“Yes, I will,” she nodded.

“Okay, you come with me,” he said, “But your friend has to stay back out in the entrance.”

“Okay,” Jolene nodded.

Boone would have argued, but this wasn’t the time to fight.

She squeezed his hand, “I’ll be back soon, I promise.”

She and the Knight left. Boone stood until he couldn’t see them anymore before he went back up. He paced the room, counting the seconds go by, waiting for Jolene to come back. He tried to calm himself. He leaned against one of the big metal containers. He kicked the dirt on the floor, then pulled his heel back. He wondered how long these bunkers had been here. What kind of technology was here that the Brotherhood was keeping for themselves?

The door opened. Boone looked up, hoping Jolene was okay. But it wasn’t her. A knight came out with a box and set it down.

“What is that?” he asked.

“Your friend’s weapons,” the knight answered, “She’s fine, by the way.”

Boone didn’t answer. The knight left. He was alone again.

He tapped his foot. What was taking so long? How big was the inside?

A few minutes later, Jolene shuffled out. She was out of her coat, pants, and shoes. She only had on her shirt and shorts. She held her arms over her chest. Her bandages were dirty, she had bled through them and let the blood dry. He’d have to remind her to clean them later. She kept her eyes on the ground, not even looking up at Boone as she walked over to the box. Around her neck was a metal collar. It dug into her neck, a light flashed on the attachment. His stomach flipped. He had seen them before.

Boone nearly shattered the rifle in his hand. He set it down, every fiber of his shaking in anger.

“What the hell did they do to you?” he said through gritted teeth.

“Nothin’,” Jolene said quickly, “Please don’t worry about it.”

“How can I not worry about it?” he asked, “How could I possibly not worry when they send you back without clothes and with a fucking slave collar around your neck?”

Jolene put her hands against his chest, “Please, just...I want it off as much as you, but I need to work with ‘em if I come outta this in one piece. Okay? Now’s not the time for no rash decisions.”

Boone didn’t know what to say back. He was so fucking mad. He couldn’t think straight. All that he could see what that red goddamn flashing light. Her life was in the hands of actual madmen. 

“I’m going to make them pay,” he swore, “No one lays a damn finger on you.”

“No one laid no fingers on me,” she said, “Please just stay cool. Please, for me?”

Boone didn’t say anything. He was trying to calm down. He was so angry he felt like he could cry. The room spun around the two of them. He took a deep breath. He held her waist to steady himself.

“I’ll try.”

“Thank you,” she said. She smiled, though nothing about it made Boone happy or relieved.

Jolene kissed his cheek. She stepped back and got her stuff out of the box.

“I wanna talk to you about somethin’ when we get back,” she said, “Um, it’s kinda important to me.”

“What about?”

“I don’t wanna get into it right now,” she said as she stood up, “When we get home, okay?”

“Okay,” Boone nodded.

“I’ll be back,” she said, “Don’t go anywhere, okay?”

He nodded.

She turned to leave but Boone caught her by her coat and spun her back around to him. He desperately kissed her, holding onto her tightly as if it was his last kiss with her. She leaned into him and held herself up on his shoulders.

He pulled away. The sooner he let her leave, the sooner she would be back. She slowly stepped back.

“I’ll see you soon,” she said.

He nodded, “Soon.”

He was alone again.

Jolene had returned five minutes after she left. Boone got up and started towards her.

“I’m almost done,” she said, putting her hand up, “If you want, you can just meet me back home.”

He shook his head, “I’ll wait.”

“Okay,” she said. She walked into the bunker.

He wasn’t going to leave her, especially not when she had a slave collar around her neck. He sat back down, his foot tapped while he waited. It’s almost done. She’s in there right now working on blowing the place up. She knows what she’s doing. He just didn’t trust those dumbass bucketheads and their laser rifles. God, if they found out what she was in there doing… He won’t think about it. Any minute now, she’ll-

Jolene rushed out the door.

“Quick!” She yelled. She pulled Boone up and dragged him behind her while she fled the bunker.

Outside, the sun was beginning to set.

The ground rumbled underneath them, smoke billowed out of the vents in the ground. Jolene lost her footing. She caught herself on her hands. Boone helped her up.

“There might be more out,” she said, “We need to get out of her quickly.”

“Let’s go.”

They rushed out of the valley and back to the Strip.


	25. Chapter 25

Boone walked into the bedroom. He had spent the past couple hours washing their clothes and the dishes that had piled up over a few weeks. Jolene had spend her time bathing and relaxing while he cleaned for her. She sat cross-legged on the bed, she combed her hair out. She wore her shirt and short- they were grey, the stains had been washed out. Her skin shone from the few dew droplets left. The dirt, blood, and ash had been washed away. There was a red mark around her neck. He grit his teeth, he reminded himself the bastards were gone for good.

His bare feet padded across the room. He sat next to her in the bed. God, it was so soft. He would never take this heavenly mattress for granted. He’d never take Jolene for granted. He wouldn’t let her suffer the same fate Carla did. He’d be more careful this time. Boone ran his finger along the red mark. He pressed a gentle kiss on it. Then, a few more.

“Boone,” she said softly. She put her comb down on her bedside table, “Since we’re back an’ settled, can we talk about somethin’ real quick?”

“Sure,” he nodded, “What is it?”

“Is there anything keepin’ you here?” she asked, “Like, anythin’ that would stop you from wantin’ to leave the Mojave?”

Three months ago, he would have said Carla. But that wasn’t really true anymore, was it? He had avenged her death and kidnapping, found out who was responsible, and doesn’t lose sleep over it anymore. Plus, she’ll always live her happiest life in his memories.

“No,” he said, “Why?”

“Well, I’m gonna be leavin’ real soon,” she said slowly, she looked down at her hands, “Soon as I can. Figured I’d finish doin’ all the dirty work ‘round here then head back home. And I was, um, I was wondering about us… and if… uh, maybe, you’d want to come up with me or not?”

Boone sat still and he stared at her. His mouth hung open as he thought about what she was asking. It was a big deal. He definitely wasn’t opposed to going with her. But it was so far from what he knew and felt comfortable with.

“You don’t have to go,” she said, “I-I just mean that I don’t plan on comin’ back here. An’-an’ what we got is real nice an’ I’d like to keep it goin’, but if you don’t wanna go with me, I’ll understand.”

“No, I want to go with you,” Boone shook his head, “I’d...really like to stay with you. I like what we have… I don’t want to give it up.”

Jolene smiled, “Really?”

“Really.”

She quickly hugged Boone. She rested her face on his shoulder, her wet hair stuck to his neck and dampened his shirt.  He ran his hands over her back and closed his eyes. She pulled away.

“You’ll love it there,” she said while she got under the covers and laid down, “All my neighbors are really nice an’ they’ll love to meet you. My daddy sold our old house and bought a brahmin farm before I left, it’s real nice there. It’s about a two-month trip, though. I hope you don’t mind.”

“I don’t,” he said, “I think it will be nice to live up there.”

She smiled and sighed.

“You got no idea how happy I am right now, Boone,” Jolene said. She turned on her side, “I figure once I get home my parents are gonna freak about me gettin’ shot.  Probably won’t let me ever leave town again.”

She soon fell asleep in his arms, snoring ever so slightly. Boone let his hands rest as he lazily gazed at her. He let his thoughts run wild as he fell asleep. He thought about what his life with Jolene would be like when they were up in Idaho. What would he do? Guard the town? Or settle down to become a farmer?

It seemed like the possibilities were endless.

He could try for children again, if she wanted. Hopefully. He didn’t know how many, maybe just one or two. He’d be happy with a family no matter how small or big.

He closed his eyes and dreamed of his future family with Jolene.


	26. Chapter 26

When Boone woke up, Jolene was out of bed. The door was opened and the smell of cooking meat wafted through. He got up and stretched. He shuffled to the kitchen, his feet scraped the top of the carpet. Unlike the carpet in his room in Novac, this carpet was like walking on a cloud. He wouldn’t mind living there forever.

Jolene was in the kitchen. The radio, as expected, was tuned into her favorite station. She hummed along as she fried meat. Boone walked up behind her and rest his chin on her shoulder.

“Good morning, Boone,” she said, “Sleep well?”

“Yeah.”

“Breakfast should be ready soon,” she told him, “Got some… gecko, supposedly. Never cooked gecko before.”

“Hm.”

He wrapped his arms around her and closed his eyes. She hummed the new song on the radio as she cooked. She leaned her head against Boone’s for a second. He sighed deeply.

“We gotta go back to the dam today,” she said. She huffed, “I’m just ready for all this stuff to be done. I ain’t a soldier. I ain’t supposed to be doin’ anythin’ down here. I just wanna go home.”

He ran his fingers over her side trying to comfort her. She pat his hand.

“Breakfast is ready,” she said, “Why don’t you go sit down?”

Boone backed up and sat at the table. Jolene set his plate down and sat across from him.

“How far is your home from here?”

“Well, not sure exactly,” she said, “I came through here when I was making it around from California. See, I went west last time I left home. Made my way down the coast and got the job from Mr. House. I’d say it’s maybe a month or two, I’d have to route it out first.”

Boone nodded.

After breakfast, they left for the dam. He listened to Jolene hum along to the radio, as she always did. It never bothered him, he could listen to her hum all day. He already listened to her talk every day. He really didn’t mind, he didn’t. He liked listening to her. She had a nice voice. It was pretty, like her.

It was probably one of his favorite things about her. 

\----

Jolene grabbed Boone’s hand on the way out of Freeside. His heart skipped a beat. He ran his thumb over her hand and smiled. She didn’t hum to the songs, she actually chose to keep the radio off.

“Boone, does your mama still live out in California?” she asked. It was a rather harsh way to break the silence.

“Yeah, as far as I know,” he said, he sighed, “She didn’t want me to enlist, but I did anyway. She didn’t take it too well. We haven’t talked since; I haven’t been back to see her. I still send her letters for her Birthday and for Christmas. Don’t know if she gets them, but it makes me feel a little better about leaving her.”

Jolene was silent for a few moments.

“Maybe, before we went to Idaho,” she said, “Would you want to go back and see her? Just, at least to see her again?”

He shook his head, “I don’t know if that’s a good idea. I don’t want to upset her by leaving again.”

“Okay, if you change your mind… let me know.”

Boone didn’t say anything.

They arrived at the Dam by noon. Boone sat next to Jolene during the meeting with Colonel Moore.

“Any news?” she asked.

“The Brotherhood of Steel has been eliminated,” Jolene said, “They shouldn’t be a problem anymore.”

“That’s good to hear,” she nodded, “Having them attack us while trying to deal with the Legion could have been catastrophic. With the situation being what it is, we can’t afford to lose any more men unnecessarily.”

Jolene nodded.

“I’ve got more important things for you to do now,” she continued, “The president is arriving soon and we’re sure the Legion won’t waste such an opportunity. I want you two to assist the security detail we’ve prepared for the president. His safety is critical to maintain the soldiers’ fighting spirit. Go up to the visitor center and speak to Ranger Grant. He’s in charge of security during the president's visit. Dismissed.”

Jolene and Boone went upstairs to the visitor center. He pointed Ranger Grant out for her.

“Hi, Ranger Grant?” Jolene said, “I’m Jolene, this is Boone.”

“I’ve heard of you two,” he nodded, “I’m glad you’re here to help. This is a delicate mission and we need all the help we can get from people we trust.” He took a breath, “We’ve got a lot to do to prepare for the President’s visit and not a lot of time, so we have a strict schedule to keep up to.”

“What can we do to help?” Jolene asked.

“Someone like you two?” he said, “I’m just glad to have you on board. Do whatever you can. Security sweeps, talk to people, keep an eye out.”

“We’re going to need access everywhere if you want us to do the job right,” Boone said.

“Alright, you’ve got it,” Ranger Grant nodded, “Anything else?”

“No further questions,” Jolene said.

“Okay, head up and we’ll start when the President gets here.”

Boone and Jolene went outside and checked out the setup. Boone scanned the place.

“If I were the one doing it, I’d be up on that ridge,” he said, “Or if I didn’t care about escaping, somewhere near that tower, or maybe behind us on the landing pad.”

Jolene nodded. She looked over at the tower while a vertibird landed.

President Kimball had arrived.

“Wait, Boone,” she hit his arm, “Watch, look at the tower, don’t that seem off? Why are there two guys up there?”

He peered up. The Ranger up there was pulled back and thrown from the tower a moment later.

“Shit,” Boone said, “It’s the assassin.”

He quickly pulled his gun out and shot the faux-Ranger. Jolene ran to Ranger Grant up on the landing pad.

“We-we found the assassin in the- in the tower,” she said out of breath.

“ Dammit!” he swore, “I can't believe the Legion actually got someone past our security. Good job catching him. I'll have a security team sweep the area to see if the Legion has any more surprises for us. I’m canceling Kimball's speech, I’ll have him leave right away. But don’t relax until he’s safe.”


	27. Chapter 27

Jolene hadn’t stopped gathering supplies since she and Boone had gotten back to the Lucky 38. Their things were strewn across the suite; everything Jolene had decided was a necessity was on the bed. Boone had been cleaning his rifle - it was long past due for maintenance. It must have been a few months since he cleaned it. No, several months. He hadn’t cleaned it since before Carla disappeared and hadn’t since he started traveling with Jolene. He hadn’t had any time, she’s never stayed in one place long enough for Boone to give it a full clean.

Jolene ran into the room, set something on the bed, then ran back out. Boone started to put his rifle back together. It was always easier for him to put it back together than take it apart. He didn’t know why. 

Jolene came back in. She looked over her things, then left again. Boone finished putting his rifle back together and propped it against the desk. He went to the bed and looked at what she had collected. 

Stimpacks. Lots of them. Her knife. The revolver she picked up from the Gun Runners and several rounds of ammo. It surely wasn’t enough to last a gunfight, but she handled her knife well enough to not rely on the gun. A few rounds, however, were not made for the revolver. Boone took them out of the mix.

Jolene walked back in. She stood by Boone, looked between him and her pile a few times, and clasped her hands.

“Is there… am I, like… is there anything else I should take?” she asked.

“No, this seems like a good pack for you.”

“Are you sure, I mean… ain’t it gonna be, I dunno…” she ran her hands together and took a breath, “There’s gonna be a lot of people fightin’, won’t it be a lot to handle? Shouldn’t I pack more?”

Boone rubbed her back and nodded.

“War is a lot to handle,” he said, “It never changes. But, you can handle a fight, I’ve seen it. And you definitely left your mark when you took out their fort across the Dam. They remember that. They’ll fear you when they see you in battle. I’m sure it was a slap on the face for a woman to wipe out their leader.”

Jolene stayed quiet and looked at the things.

“I’ll be watching your back,” he continued, “I promise, I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

She leaned into him, “Don’t make that promise.”

“I won’t,” he repeated, “I’m not losing you too.”

Jolene turned to him and kissed his cheek.

“You won’t.”


	28. Chapter 28

Jolene was stopped halfway across the Dam, the Boomers had just rocked much of the Legion’s forces.

“Courier!” A Ranger caught her attention as she had finished sticking herself with a stimpack.

“Yes?” she stood up straighter.

“Alpha Squad reporting in,” He said, “Thanks for the support back there. My squad and I been assigned to ensure you make it to the Legate. How can we be of assistance?”

Jolene glanced between him and Boone, “I could use some more snipers to cover my advance.”

“Roger that,” he nodded, “I’ll have some snipers cover your position.”

“Boone,” she said, “Will you cover me with them?”

He nodded.

She turned to leave, but he caught her arm,

“Wait, Jolene,” he said, “Before you go… I just want you to know, I, uh, I l-’”

“Can you tell me when we catch back up?” she cut him off.

He looked at her for a moment, lips still parted from trying to talk. He closed his mouth and nodded. He turned and left with the Ranger.

Within minutes, Boone was sitting shoulder to shoulder with a squad of Rangers on the tower overlooking the Dam and the Legate’s camp. It was strange working with a team again. It reminded him of working with Manny in uniform before everything went to shit for them. He kept his sights trained on Jolene as she approached the gate to the camp. She spun her knife in her hand and stopped at the door. She looked back like she was looking for someone. She turned back and entered the camp.

For a minute, he couldn’t see her. The fence was tall and limited his sight on the camp.

His spotter gave him a target.

Boone moved and shot a legionnaire running towards Jolene. She appeared from behind the fence as she went deeper into the camp. Another guy went down near her. She made her way through the camp. One guy got too close to her, she tackled him and took him on. Boone shot down another guy and another guy and another guy.

Within minutes the fight was over. Jolene stood in the middle of the camp, bloody.

The Legate strode out from where ever he had been hiding. He was covered head to toe in a metal-plated suit.

Boone put his gun on safety but kept watch through the scope. It wasn’t safe to take him out, not yet. He was too close to Jolene. And he didn’t have any armor-piercing rounds. Even with them, it may be too thick of a metal. Still, Boone tracked the Legate as he moved across the camp.

Jolene didn’t go to fight; instead, she started to talk. He couldn’t hear, being so far from the camp.

So, he waited.

He could tell the Legate wanted to fight, but Jolene persisted. He waved his hands, gesturing to her, to himself, behind him, and towards the Dam. He wondered how long it was going to take her to talk him down, it usually didn’t take that long. 

The Legate gestured to his sword. Then, a shot rang out from beside Boone. It ricocheted off of the Legate’s chest plate and went through Jolene’s side. 

“Hold your fire!” the squad leader scolded.

Jolene stumbled back and clutched her side. Surprisingly, she kept talking.

Soon after, the Legate left and the Legion retreated. Slowly, Jolene backed out of the camp and stumbled onto the dam. Boone gripped his rifle.

He stood up.

“Hold your position, solder,” he was commanded.

Boone moved to leave but he was stopped.

“Soldier! Hold position!”

He looked back, a troop was carrying Jolene back over the dam. His heart hammered.

“I have to go,” he shook his head, "I have to go."

“We have standing orders to hold our position. Until we get new ones, you stay here.”


	29. Epilogue

Boone woke up to a little finger poking his face. He opened his eyes. His youngest, Craig Jr, stood glaring at him.

“Hey bud,” he yawned, “It’s pretty early to be awake, don’t you think?”

“No,” Craig Jr. shook his head, “Move.”

Boone rubbed his face, “What?”

“Move, I want to lay with Mama,” he said.

“Buddy, mama’s sleeping with Rosanna and Desert Rose..”

He turned over, Jolene had their next youngest, the twins, on either side of her.

Craig Jr. climbed on top of Boone and sat on his chest.

“Jesus,” Boone coughed. He grabbed Craig Jr. and laid him down next to him. “Bud, why aren’t you in your room? Bad dream?”

He shook his head.

“JJ is hit me.”

“Well, did you wake him up?”

“Yeah, he was being loud.”

Johnny Joey, their oldest, snored terribly.

“You know he doesn’t like people to wake him up.”

“But he woke me up!”

“I know bud, I’m sorry.”

Boone readjusted. Five people in a double bed were three kids too many.

“Look, why don’t you go sleep in Sierra’s room?” Boone said, “The girls aren’t in their beds, I’ll put you down in there.”

Boone got up and picked up Craig Jr. He tiptoed across the house and quietly opened the door to the girls’ room.

Sierra sat up.

“Daddy?”

“Sorry, Princess,” he said, “Craig’s going to sleep in here, I was just putting him down. Go back to sleep.”

She laid back down.

Boone put Craig Jr. down and tucked him in. He kissed his forehead.

“Sleep well, buddy,” he said.

He walked over to Sierra’s bed and kissed her forehead.

“Sweet dreams.”

“Goodnight, daddy.”

Boone walked back to his room, slowly closing the door behind him. He laid back down and turned over.

“Hun?” Jolene whispered, “Still awake?”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you up,” he whispered back.

“No, it’s okay. What time is it?”

“I don’t know, the sun isn’t up yet. Maybe 2-3.”

“Okay,” she nodded, “Will you help me moved Desert Rose to the other side?”

Boone lifted her up, Jolene scoot over closer to him. He set Desert Rose down on the other side of Jolene, next to Rosanna.

Jolene curled up to him, he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her neck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally finished it! I hope you enjoyed reading it!


End file.
